Stay Up To Date Heading link
Follow our Lavender Graduation Facebook page for information on our upcoming graduation! You can also see our past posts regarding previous graduations.
13th Annual Lavender Graduation Heading link
We are extremely excited to announce that the 2019 UIC Lavender Graduation keynote speaker was Jenne Vailoces! Jenne is the owner of Jennivee’s Bakery , LLC, a Filipina and Trans community leader and activist! We are honored to have had Jenne as our 2019 Lavender Graduation keynote speaker at the National Hellenic Museum.
Thank you to our 2019 sponsors:
UIC College of Architecture, Design, and the Arts
UIC College of Engineering
UIC College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
UIC Nursing
UIC College of Pharmacy
UIC Graduate College
UIC Honors College
Jane Addams College of Social Work
UIC Office of Diversity
UIC School of Public Health
UIC Richard J. Daley Library
UIC Library of the Health Sciences.
Why is Lavender Graduation important to you? Heading link
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Celebration
“Being able to celebrate the achievement of making it through college along with fellow people in my community is really important!”
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Tradition
“Lavender Graduation is such an important tradition, not only for students and staff at GSC, but the University as a whole. It gives folks an opportunity to celebrate with their loved ones an important milestone – graduation!”
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Accomplishments
“It’s a special night where I get to celebrate this huge accomplishment with my closest peers and other Queer folks. It haas a lot more of a personal feel than the regular graduation ceremony.”
Jenne Vailoces; Keynote Speaker Heading link
Jenne Vailoces is the founder of Jennivee’s Bakery, a passionate home baker who immigrated from the Philippines to the United States. She had a life long dream to open a cozy patisserie that showcased traditional American and Filipino cakes and pastries. While creating a safe and welcoming space for everyone to come and indulge.
Jenne is also working to hire new employees through TransWorks, an organization that prepares transgender youth for the workplace. She hopes to help other transgender people circumvent the violence, homelessness, depression and high suicide rates that too often afflict the community. The message she hopes to send with her success: ‘There is hope, and you can still be happy and fulfilled. You don’t have to live a life of hopelessness and darkness.’
