On Feb. 8, graduate student Sylvia Sequina-Hitchcock emailed the App State Henderson Springs LGBTQ+ Resource Center asking for the Lavender Graduation dates for the 2024-25 academic year. 

Lavender Graduation, hosted by the LGBTQ+ resource center in previous years, is a ceremony focused on celebrating and supporting App State students who identify as queer. Historically, the word “lavender” was used to describe men who were suspected to be gay in the 1930s, according to CNN. As time progressed, the queer community began to reclaim the word “lavender” to identify accepting spaces or people. 

“Lavender is a coded word for the queer community,” Jovin-Fisher said. “Lavender Graduation is a space to be seen full in that and honored.”

The LGBTQ+ resource center informed Sequina-Hitchcock that Lavender Graduation would “have to be hosted by other club organizations in the future.” 

In an effort to make sure seniors could experience Lavender Graduation, Sequina-Hitchcock, the president of the Orchesis Alliance, said she reached out to graduate student Scarlet Jovin-Fisher to see if their student organization would be able to host Lavender Graduation.

Jovin-Fisher and Sequina-Hitchcock, both clinical mental health counseling students, said during the ceremony, graduates will receive a certificate with their chosen name instead of their legal name.

“It’s the first time either of us has made any event of this scale, really,” Jovin-Fisher said. “I mean, we plan events in our organization and for our field, but nothing like this.”

Sequina-Hitchcock said in an email she had intended to participate in the event after her best friend participated the year before, and was disappointed to receive the response that the event would not be hosted by the university.

“This new ceremony feels like an accurate representation of the spaces I want to foster for myself and the LGBTQ community that I am a part of,” Sequina-Hitchcock said in her email. “With the various DEI changes and political erasure of the LGBTQ community over these last few years, it felt critical to host this event and create a safe space to be our whole selves and honor our academic accomplishments and strength as a community.”

Anna Oakes, Senior Director of Public Relations for University Communications, wrote in an email that Lavender Graduation is being co-hosted by several student organizations on April 30 and linked the event’s Engage page. It was not specified why the university would not be funding Lavender Graduation or if App State will be hosting the event in the future. 

Sequina-Hitchcock said Lavender Graduation did not receive funding from App State or the LGBTQ+ resource center, instead funding came from other club organizations, as well as a variety of sponsors including businesses and community member donations. 

Jovin-Fisher and Sequina-Hitchcock said they checked with the board of Orchesis Alliance to ensure they wanted to be a part of the planning process. 

“They were all super excited,” Sequina-Hitchcock said. “And from there, we just started planning.”

Jovin-Fisher said a large part of the planning process came from networking and figuring out the budget for putting together Lavender Graduation. 

Lavender Graduation was held in the Plemmons Student Union Summit Trail Solarium on April 30 from 5:30 to 8 p.m.After settling on a space for the graduation ceremony, the pair said they did not run into any major obstacles while putting the ceremony together. Jovin-Fisher said she was unsure of what the ceremony would look like.

“Is it going to be two of us standing in a room with some cookies?” she asked.

Jovin-Fisher and Sequina-Hitchcock planned interactive activities provided by Orchesis Alliance. According to its website, the organization “aims to elevate the awareness and understanding of expressive arts therapy and its benefits.” 

The organization hosted a “community art” activity that was open to the attendees. 

“In terms of the art activity, we’re kind of intending to do these collaborative art pieces,” Sequina-Hitchcock said. “Rather than having split up pieces, part of the healing work that we do as students in the expressive arts therapies is offering spaces where we can do this in support of each other.”

Sequina-Hitchcock said there are benefits to being in the physical presence of support and community provided by the community art piece. 

“Sometimes people will write or draw in one spot and another person in another spot,” Sequina-Hitchcock said. “Then we encourage them to connect their art together and it’s really cool what can emerge from allowing people to try and step into someone else’s little creative spot.”

Jovin-Fisher said Lavender Graduation included speakers and performers. 

“We’ve been asking to kind of share either experience from the queer community, the LGBTQ community,” Sequina-Hitchcock said. “We’ve talked to a few alumni about coming.”

Jovin-Fisher said they didn’t want to put limitations on what presenters spoke on, ensuring Lavender Graduation was supportive for all.
“That’s kind of what’s been most important to us — is just making it feel safe and supportive,” Sequina-Hitchcock said. 

Sequina-Hitchcock said she hopes Orchesis Alliance will host Lavender Graduation in the future, but is unsure of the “set plan.” She said whether or not the organization will be hosting Lavender Graduation will be up to the organization’s board each year.