When Tori Swarm helped plan Kent’s first Lavender Graduation, a low budget and minimal support left her and her fellow coordinators scrambling for materials, borrowing space and defending the very idea of the event.

“We were literally scavenging for a lot of the parts,” Swarm said. “Trying to make it exciting and planned and beautiful, but also knowing that there wasn’t a whole ton that we could throw at it.” 

Kent’s Lavender Graduation began in 2013 as a humble gathering of a small community and has since evolved into one of Kent’s most vibrant celebrations — a pre-commencement event where LGBTQ+ students and allies alike are celebrated not just for earning their degrees but for navigating their own personal journeys.

This celebration includes an alumni reception, followed by a dinner and awards ceremony, featuring both a student and alumni keynote speaker. 

This first ceremony celebrated three graduates, with 25 people in attendance. Swarm, an alumni who graduated in 2015, won the Out and Proud Student Leader Award for her contribution to this inaugural event.

“The original first celebration was held at Hillel, who allowed us to use their space, and since then it has just grown incrementally every year,” said Ken Ditlevson, the director of the LGBTQ+ Center. “We always bring a Kent State alum; someone who can speak from an alumni perspective and get our graduates excited.”

In the years since its inception, this celebration has grown greatly in size and extravagance, with the ceremony now taking place in the Kent Student Center Ballroom. Due to COVID-19 pandemic, the Lavender Graduation was held virtually in 2020 and 2021.

“It was a tiny event then,” said Molly Merryman, an associate professor at the School of Peace and Conflict Studies. “Under Ken’s guidance, it’s become this absolutely amazing, large dynamic event.” 

Merryman not only attended Kent’s first Lavender Graduation, but also served as its first keynote speaker and went on to win the Delores Noll Distinguished Faculty/Staff Award in 2015. 

Ditlevson said on average, this event costs around $16,000, which has been fully funded by private and donated funds to the center’s support fund. 

This year’s newly renamed Lavender Celebration is expected to have 340 people attending to celebrate roughly 75 graduates and will take place on Thursday, May 1 in the ballroom of The Student Center. 

Origins of a tradition

Though Kent held its first Lavender Graduation in 2013, the original Lavender Graduation was founded in 1995 by Ronni Sanlo at the University of Michigan after she was not invited to attend her child’s graduation ceremony due to her sexual orientation. 

“This painful experience made me acutely aware of the marginalization faced by LGBTQ+ students in academic settings,” Sanlo said. “My goal was to ensure that LGBTQ+ students felt recognized and celebrated for their achievements.”

Sanlo’s idea was not initially embraced. Organizing a celebration that centered around LGBTQ+ students meant navigating institutional limitations and working to build enough trust in her community for students to be out in academic spaces. 

“Despite these challenges, the success of the first Lavender Graduation laid the groundwork for its expansion,” Sanlo said. “Today, it is celebrated at numerous colleges and universities, honoring the achievements and resilience of LGBTQ+ students.”

Over the years, Sanlo has watched her creation evolve from a grassroots ceremony to a tradition cherished and celebrated by over 500 colleges and universities. 

“Today, Lavender Graduation is seen not just as a celebration of academic achievement, but also as a powerful affirmation of identity, resilience and community,” Sanlo said. 

In the years since its creation, Sanlo has presented the keynote address at several universities, including Kent State in 2017. 

Following diversity, equity and inclusion pullbacks at universities across the country, the Lavender Graduation faces an uncertain future. 

“My hope is that Lavender Graduation isn’t lost along with the death of DEI,” Sanlo said. “Many universities are closing their LGBTQ centers, which usually host the Lav Grad events. I hope people find creative ways to keep Lav Grad alive.”

From graduation to celebration

In accordance with recent legislation, Kent State renamed the Lavender Graduation to the Lavender Celebration as a means of clarifying the event’s intent. 

“Our event is not a graduation event,” Ditlevson said. “It’s a pre-commencement event, and we wanted to make sure that we were being clear with that and trying to fall in line with the expectations of our legislators.” 

Though this name change does not change the intent of the celebration, there are some that feel that this rebrand by the university is a step backwards. 

“When you work really hard for something and it’s so good and it supports students and then to have this sort of culture of fear around it and then the name changes,” said Lauren Vachon, an associate professor of LGBTQ studies. “I just can’t help but be upset or, you know, concerned about the future of Lav Grad.” 

Despite uncertainty surrounding the future of the Lavender Celebration, there are many who still find it to be a vital celebration of LGBTQ+ students and their accomplishments. Many alumni, like Swarm, are prepared to help support the event in the future if they must. 

“Contrary to what people are saying in this political moment, it is absolutely true that LGBTQ students face additional barriers and this graduation was always intended to be a celebration of that,” Vachon said. “It just is to say that queer and trans students have faced hurdles and obstacles, and the fact that they have come to graduation is just something that should be celebrated.”

Merryman emphasized that this event is not exclusive to the LGBTQ+ community and has always recognized allies. Any student who wishes to participate in the ceremony and get a rainbow stole may do so. 

“I hope that this doesn’t become a historical footnote, but that we are able to continue to celebrate and bring attention to the achievements of our graduates,” Merryman said. “Even though there is a slight name change this year, the event is going to be what it has evolved into, which is a wonderful evening that celebrates our graduates.”

Connor Nagy is a reporter. Contact him at [email protected].