Elon honors winter graduates with affinity celebrations

Ahead of commencement ceremonies on Friday, Dec. 13, Elon University held three affinity celebrations on Dec. 12 for graduates in the School of Law and School of Health Sciences. The programs, held to honor and celebrate the rich diversity of Elon’s community, are hosted through the Division of Inclusive Excellence, including Laké Laosebikan-Buggs, director of inclusive excellence for graduate and professional education.

Lavender Graduation reminds graduates they are deserving ‘simply by being’

Elon’s Lavender Graduation Ceremony celebrated nine LGBTQIA students from Elon’s School of Law. The ceremony has been celebrated at Elon since 2012 for undergraduates and 2022 for graduate and professional students. The Gender and LGBTQIA Center (GLC) and the Division of Inclusive Excellence.

“This event serves as a powerful reminder that we are all deserving, simply by being. We are truly grateful for the opportunity to celebrate the accomplishments of such an exceptional group of students,” said Laosebikan-Buggs. “Our existence, especially in higher education, is an act of resistance, and I am honored to recognize the hard work and perseverance that have brought our students to this moment. We are truly grateful for the opportunity to celebrate the accomplishments of such an exceptional group of students.”

Each student received a rainbow stole and heard a personal tribute from friends, family and faculty, including Bob Minarcin, assistant professor of law, and Kirsta Contino Saumby, associate director of career development for the School of Law.

Minarcin, who is also the OUTLaw faculty co-adviser, read the tribute for Nicholle Parsons L’24, executive director of OUTLaw, calling her a “force of nature.”

“Nicholle is the kind of person who embodies the phrase ‘a true friend for all,’ but that’s only scratching the surface,” said Minarcin. “She’s also fiercely determined, unflinchingly brave and a relentless advocate for what’s right.”

Alex Xouris ’21, a member of the Elon LGBTQIA Alumni Network, encouraged graduates to reflect on the “power of connection.”

“Lavender Graduation is a time to celebrate your courage—the courage it takes to embrace who you are, to live authentically and to claim your space in the world. Hold onto that feeling,” said Xouris. “Staying connected to Elon is one of the most important things you can do as an alum.”

Laosebikan-Buggs closed the ceremony with words of encouragement for the graduates.

“May we all live in a life and a world where we aren’t judged by our race, our size, our orientation, or sparkle,” said Buggs. “Until next time, I wish you nothing but sunshine, rainbows, and unicorns, which are no less fictitious and no less magical than you are.”

¡Celebremos! honors resilience and family 

Nine students from the Elon School of Law and the School of Health Sciences were honored during ¡Celebremos! Graduates Take Flight, celebrating Latinx/Hispanic students and the contributions of their families and friends. While the event is held annually in the spring semester, this is only the second time the event was held in the fall semester for winter commencement.

Lupe Ramirez-Ramos L’24 addressed her fellow graduates, offering congratulations and reminding them of their resilience.

“We are the daughters, the granddaughters, the great-granddaughters of women who carried on despite overwhelming odds,” said Ramierz-Ramos. “And as we step into the professions of law and health, we do so with the understanding that our presence is not just a victory for us individually, but for all those who will follow in your footsteps.”

Each student received a stole with monarch butterflies – a symbol of the journey the students have made.

“Every year, millions of monarch butterflies migrate from North to South. Along the way, they stop at different points in order to recharge and continue their journey. As immigrants, we have been on a long journey and have much more to go just like the monarch butterfly,” said MJ Larrazabal G’21, associate director of the Center for Race, Ethnicity, and Diversity Education. “We, as part of the Latinx Hispanic community understand that no matter where we come from and no matter where our journey takes us, we have all found ourselves at this stop at the same time.

While receiving their stole, faculty members read messages the students wrote to themselves and their families about their accomplishments.

“There is nothing more valuable to me than having your unconditional love,” wrote Jennifer Tinoco Ortiz ’24 to her family. “You are my greatest source of inspiration, and I will always carry you with me in every decision and every achievement that comes my way. This diploma is for you.”

Connection and family were front and center during the celebration and Sofia Montalbo ’20, a member of the Elon Latinx/Hispanic Alumni Network stressed the importance of the Elon community.

“You are never alone in this journey,” said Montalbo. “Embrace the unknowns with courage. Let the lessons you’ve learned here at Elon fuel your journey forward and never forget the incredible community that stands ready to catch you when you stumble and, more importantly, celebrate your wins.”

In kente ceremony, lessons for a more just world

Get proximate to the problems you are trying to solve.

Be willing to change the narrative.

Be willing to be uncomfortable.

Stay hopeful.

Civil rights attorney Bryan Stevenson has been a longtime advocate on behalf of people sentenced to death row. His ongoing work through the Equal Justice Initiative he founded in 1989 has influenced countless others over the years, including Associate Professor Stephanie Baker, chair of Elon University’s Department of Public Health.

“You can imagine in doing this hard work that he has learned quite a bit about what we need to do to create a more just world,” said Baker, who delivered a keynote address in a Donning of the Kente Ceremony for 2024 graduates of Elon University’s School of Law and School of Health Sciences. “(Mr. Stevenson) offers four incredibly important lessons that I apply regularly and may be of use to you.”

Those lessons and more were shared by Baker as part of a cultural celebration for Black students on the eve of Commencement ceremonies. Following Baker’s address, faculty and staff read aloud remarks submitted by a family member or mentor of each graduate who stood on stage after being donned with a stole to be worn at graduation.

The cloth’s origin dates to 12th Century Ghana where it was worn by kings, queens and important figures of state during ceremonial events and special occasions. In a cultural context, it is a visual representation of African history, philosophy, ethics, oral literature, moral values, social code of conduct, religious beliefs, political thought and aesthetic principles.

“The donning of the kente is a cultural ceremony celebrating achievements of … students who recognize their African roots,” School of Health Sciences Dean Maha Lund said in her program welcome. “We look forward to this positive and memorable experience to reward our graduates and their loved ones with a personal and culturally relevant ceremony at this significant moment of their family’s histories.”

The event was organized by Laosebikan-Buggs, with assistance and contributions from faculty and staff in the School of Law, the School of Health Sciences and the Division of Inclusive Excellence.

In closing the ceremony, Elon Law Dean Zak Kramer reflected on the importance of both schools celebrating the kente program together “because you are going into professions that serve.”

“This is an incredibly important moment in your lives, and it represents a lot of hard work,” Kramer said. “Friends, you’re about to go do much harder work. It speaks to the soul of our culture and our civic society, and you will have responsibilities with people’s lives in your hands and their livelihood. We have been very lucky to watch you develop over time and we will be even luckier when you come back and tell us all the amazing things that you have done.”