On Monday, April 20, I was inducted into the inaugural cohort for the Lavender Leadership Honor Society at the University of Maryland. Inductees are selected by a panel based on equal parts their academic scholarship and their community activism, both past and present. The principles of the honor society are:
We seek to create a world and a university community that is fully equitable, and which empowers agents of social justice for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people, and all those who face structural and interpersonal marginalization because of their gender identity and expressing or their sexual orientation.
We also believe in solidarity and collaboration, and in intersectional approaches to social justice that affirm the whole person and all things that can lead to liberated and flourishing communities.
We are a diverse community of leaders who value inclusion, kindness, and genuineness as core leadership values. We seek to build communities and networks, to support our communities, to foster an environment that creates spaces for many and diverse leaders and voices, to educate others, and to advocate for equity.
Kristi Tredway, PhD 