The ninth annual Lavender Graduation ceremony will be held to honor graduating members of the LGBT and ally community at Iowa State.

The ceremony, sponsored by LGBT Student Services, will recognize about 15 graduates from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Thursday in the Campanile Room of the Memorial Union.

Ellen Semran, coordinator for LGBT Student Services, said the ceremony is important because it recognizes the experiences and challenges LGBT students face while also celebrating their accomplishments.

“The students that are recognized at Lavender Graduation have been actively involved in creating positive change for the campus climate at Iowa State, so the LGBTQ community wants to recognize what they have done for the community,” she said.

Charles Erickson, graduate student in educational leadership and policy studies, is graduating with a Master of Education degree and is scheduled to make the keynote address.

His speech, “So What Do We Do Now?” will focus on how graduates can continue to make change in the world.

Erickson said Lavender Graduation honors graduates for who they are as people, regardless of their race, background or sexual orientation.

“To acknowledge that we made it through is quite exciting,” he said.

Erickson said it is important to recognize the struggles LGBT students face.

“The ISU community has the opportunity to gather together to honor these students, not only for their academic achievements at Iowa State, but also, it gives the community the opportunity to publicly acknowledge their courage for being themselves at ISU,” Erickson said.

Said Warren Blumenfeld, assistant professor of curriculum and instruction, “I think it is an important event to celebrate the contributions the students have made to ISU and the courage and commitment it takes to come out as an LGBT person.”

Blumenfeld said Lavender Graduation is a sign of solidarity and a way to show support for students who are marginalized in their society.

Erickson said the Ames chapter of Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays would provide gifts to honor and show support for students.

Ronni Sanlo held the first Lavender Graduation at the University of Michigan in 1995. She chose lavender because of its importance to LGBT history.

Lavender is the color combination of the pink triangle gay men were forced to wear in concentration camps in Nazi Germany and the black triangle Nazis used to designate lesbians as political prisoners.

The LGBT community reclaimed these symbols and colors to show pride and community, according to the UCLA LGBT Campus Resource Center.