Congratulations to the Latina/o Studies undergraduate and graduate minors and graduates of the class of 2020!
On Friday, May 29, 2020 Latina/o Studies, Latinx Student Success Office, Latino Living Center, and the Cornell Latino Alumni Association joined together with families, students, faculty and staff for a, Virtual Latinx End of Year Fiesta: Looking Back Looking Forward! to celebrate the accomplishments of 15 undergraduate minors, 4 graduate minors and graduates of the Class of 2020.
The event began with a video created by Latina/o Studies administrative assistant, Zucy Ortega.
The virtual program opened with a welcome from Debra Castillo, Latina/o Studies program director: "I write this note knowing that your senior year has been cut short, and this is not the graduation we planned for you. It comes during a moment of unprecedented challenge for the nation and the world, one that has already revealed itself as a critical juncture for anti-racist work. The Latina/o Studies program staff and faculty, like you, are working from home, and we reflect upon your accomplishments over the last years with the particular bittersweetness of this historical moment of forced isolation."
Latina/o Studies faculty spoke about the many accomplishments of the minors who had worked with them over the years, and students and alums who were present also shared their comments, live and on chat.
We announced several awards and recognitions throughout the evening. Awards for outstanding work in the the Latina/o Studies undergraduate minor, community engagement and academic achievements, nominated by faculty, were given to two seniors: Tania Penafort and Lizeth Arzate Reyes; and Juliette Corazón presented the Latinx Student Success Office certificate of appreciation recognizing outstanding dedication and service to Cornell's Latinx student community to Patricia Gonzalez.
Our special guests, alums Stephanie Adams Ryan '04 (CLAA president) and Dan Domenech '92 (CLAA vice president) spoke to the Class of 2020 and shared a salutatory video to the Class of 2020 (see the video in Facebook here):
"We are so grateful that CLAA was given the opportunity to participate in this beautiful virtual celebration honoring the Class of 2020. We want all members of the class to know that Cornell’s Latino Alumni are here for them and that they are now a part of our global family. It was so inspiring to see all of these future Latino leaders come together, so we could celebrate their success and future."
Stephanie Adams Ryan '04, CLAA president
The evening included a musical interlude by Sally Ramirez, local Latinx artist.
It ended with a CLAA salutatory video to the Class of 2020 (if you have problems accessing the video, see the Facebook post).
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