A graduation ceremony celebrating Mexican American identity is expanding across the CUNY network. Lizbeth De La Cruz Santana, an assistant professor in the Black and Latino Studies Department at Baruch College, has announced the first CUNY-wide Mexican American graduation ceremony.
The ceremony, scheduled for May 2 at Lehman College’s Performing Arts Center, builds on the smaller, Baruch-only event that occurred last year. What began as a brief event with a month of planning has evolved into a larger initiative aimed at celebrating Mexican American identity and achievements across the CUNY system.
“It has bloomed from that first graduation to this larger initiative,” De La Cruz Santana told The Ticker.
Last year’s ceremony was made possible in large part through community support and donations.
The CUNY Mexican Studies Institute, Baruch’s Office of Student Life and Baruch’s Immigrant Student Success Initiative stepped in to donate graduation stoles, certificates and more.
With this new expansion, the ceremony will receive similar support from other organizations and the public.
De La Cruz Santana is now looking for people willing to donate their time for the ceremony and take on roles, such as performers, DJs and guest speakers.
As part of these efforts, she has launched an outreach initiative on social media, working with students to invite Mexican singer Peso Pluma to serve as a “padrino de honor,” or honorary guest speaker for the ceremony.
These outreach efforts have been rooted in students’ interests and the potential for him to connect with students on experiences of success as someone who initially did not have a lot of opportunities.
The ceremony is designed to center students’ cultural identity, while also recognizing the role of family and community in their academic journeys.
Graduates will have their names called individually and will be able to walk across the stage with up to two people of their choice, such as family members or loved ones who have made a difference in their lives.
“It kind of materializes in the fact that ‘oh wow, I just graduated,’ especially if you’re a first-generation student,” De La Cruz Santana said. “I think that also helps your family feel extremely proud of you.”
De La Cruz Santana said the ceremony also responds to a broader need among many Mexican American students across CUNY who have expressed concerns about a lack of spaces where they feel represented.
“Mexican students have always needed a space,” she said.
“They felt like, even in New York, ‘where do you find your people?’”
Since expanding the ceremony, interest has grown significantly, with more than 170 students already signed up to participate ahead of the April 1 deadline.
Although the ceremony is reserved for Mexican American graduates, De La Cruz Santana hopes the ceremony will inspire similar initiatives for other communities across CUNY.
“Unfortunately, it takes time for these things to evolve, but you have to plant the seeds,” she said. “So, I always encourage that, and hopefully this inspires future generations.”
