Signature Events
Lavender Celebration
The Lavender Celebration recognizes LGBTQIAP+ students and allies of all races and ethnicities and acknowledges their contributions to making WPI a welcoming place for all students. Lavender is important to LGBTQ history. It is a combination of the pink triangle that gay men were forced to wear in concentration camps and the black triangle designating lesbians as political prisoners in Nazi Germany. The LGBTQ civil rights movement took these symbols of hatred and combined them to make symbols and color of pride and community.
All graduating students, including undergraduates and graduates, are invited to take part in the celebration. All community members are welcome to attend.
The Lavender Ceremony was created by Dr. Ronni Sanlo, a Jewish Lesbian, who was denied the opportunity to attend the graduations of her biological children because of her sexual orientation. It was through this experience that she came to understand the pain felt by her students. Encouraged by the Dean of Students at the University of Michigan, Dr. Sanlo designed the first Lavender Ceremony in 1995.




History/Heritage Months
The Office of Diversity, Inclusion, and Multicultural Education collaborates with student organizations and campus partners to celebrate the contributions of our multicultural communities at WPI. Our programs strive to recognize and appreciate the identities of our students, faculty, and staff members through education, dialogues, and community building opportunities.
Previous History/Heritage Month Announcements:
- Arab American Heritage Month
- Armenian Heritage Month
- Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month
- Black History Month
- Breast Cancer Awareness Month
- Caribbean American Heritage Month
- Hispanic and Latine/x Heritage Month
- Indigenous Peoples Heritage Month
- Jewish American Heritage Month
- Juneteenth
- LGBTQIAP+ History Month
- Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebration
- Pride Month
- Women's History Month