SIUE Honors Students During Special Graduation Celebrations
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s Inclusive Excellence, Education and Development Hub (The Hub) hosted five special celebrations to honor graduates representing various historically minoritized populations during the week of Dec. 6-10, ahead of the University’s fall 2021 commencement exercises being held Friday-Saturday, Dec. 17-18.
During the daily graduation celebrations, SIUE recognized graduates who identify as Latinx, Black, Asian American, Pacific Islander (AAPI), LBTQIA+ and non-traditional. The pre-commencement ceremonies celebrated the extraordinary achievements made by these students.
“At a predominantly white institution (PWI) like SIUE, it is important to recognize the experiences of those students who may not have the same experiences as those for whom the institution was created,” said Lindy Wagner, assistant vice chancellor for Inclusive Excellence, Education and Development. “It is our job to ensure these students receive all the recognition possible for not only graduating, but also doing so with potentially more complications and hurdles to overcome to get to this point. In The Hub, we don’t believe one’s identity is singular, and many students participated in multiple graduation celebrations because their identities are intersectional.”
The ceremonies were originated by the Kimmel Student Involvement center, the Student Opportunities for Academic Results (SOAR) Office and the SIUE Safe Zone program. The groups continue to support the events alongside The Hub.
“The Hub is happy to coordinate these events, because our goal is to provide space where students feel a sense of belonging,” Wagner shared. “Sometimes people ask why we have these separate graduation celebrations. It’s important for people to recognize that in order to be an antiracist, diverse, inclusive and equitable campus, we must provide equitable opportunities. What better way to do that than provide a graduation celebration where a student’s authentic self is celebrated, and where they don’t have to worry about performing in an expected way because of the audience.”
Photo: A variety of graduation celebrations recognized students from historically minoritized populations. (top L-R) AAPI Graduation Celebration, Black Graduation Celebration, (bottom L-R) Latinx Graduation Celebration, Non-Traditional Student Graduation Celebration, and Rainbow Graduation Celebration.
