The Chávez /Lorde Social Justice Award 2022

Presented to students who have demonstrated a strong dedication to social change for the Ithaca College and local community through various platforms, projects, or initiatives.

Our Namesakes: César Chávez and Audre Lorde

César Chávez is best known for his civil activism surrounding labor rights and farm worker advocacy.  He co-founded the National Farm Worker’s Association, now called United Farm Workers with Dolores Huerta in 1962.  Chávez was well known for his use of collective nonviolent strategic actions, organizing strikes, boycotts, and fasts to negotiate better working conditions and wages.

Audre Lorde was a self-described “black, lesbian, mother, warrior, poet”.  Her radical feminism informed her poetry as well as her prose. Her extensive work on marginalization and the complexity of self-hood made her a foundational theorist for intersectional feminism.

"Everything I have dedicated to my activism work was never for now, but it was a gateway to uplift future students of color. It’s setting down the blueprint so that those may rise into a sustainable community." 

Sebastian Chavez, Class of 2022

Our 2022 Award Recipients

The 2022 Chavez-Lorde Social Justice Award recipients along with their majors, minors, and a small highlight of their involvement on campus.  Congratulations to all our awardees!

Olivia Carpenter

Olivia is standing and looking at the camera. She is wearing a black and red shirt. Her curly hair is parted down the middle.

Major: Business Administration 

Speaker for Student Leadership Institute | Owner of Via's Cookies | Teaching Assistant | Host of Demo Day Business Competitions | MLK Scholar | Hifashion Studios Model 

Sebastian Chavez

Sebastian is looking directly at the camera. He is wearing a white button up shirt and standing in front of a flowering tree.

Major: Politics | Minor: Latinx Studies 

Student Governance Council | Student Of Color Coalition | Whalen Symposium: Presenter | Spearheaded BIPOC Townhall | Spearheaded Stand For Justice Webinar | Ambassador of Politics | Academic Honors | Delegation: Austin Tan Cerca De La Frontera | I CARE Internship: Borgen Project | Fitness Crew Member | Ithaca College Intramural Official | Marketing Member. 

Hana Cho

Hana is sitting on cement stairs looking up over the camera and smiling. They are wearing a read and black jacket, jeans, and a white shirt. They have on white rimmed glasses.

Major: Integrative Studies: Justice in Education & Educational Policy | Minor: Asian American Studies 

MLK Scholar | Ithaca Pan Asian American Film Festival | Marketing and Publicity Committee | Community Plunge | JumpStart Leader | Service Saturdays | Asian American Alliance, Co-President |  IC Voices. 

Cassandra Logedo

Cassandra is looking at the camera with her body slightly turned away in front of a white background. She is wearing a red blazer with a black turtleneck and her hair is pulled back into a low bun.

Major: Integrated Marketing Communications | Minor: Legal Studies 

Residential Assistant/Apartment Assistant | Community Outreach Manager | The Ithacan | MLK Scholar | Vice President of Publicity & Promotions |  Professional Achievement & Career Excellence Club (PACE) | Student Consulting for Non-for-profit Organizations | Women's Club Ultimate Frisbee | American Advertising Federation | Tau Theta Chapter of Lambda Pi Eta | Student Supervisor MACS convenience store | Sales Associate, Ithaca College Bookstore | Alternative Spring Break. 

Cyepress Rite

Cyepress is standing in a part. They are wearing a multicolored headwrap, orang jacket and marigold blouse. They have wooden earring and thin rimmed glasses on as they stare at the camera.

Major: Integrative Studies, B.A. in Queerness & Black Identity Politics | Minor: Spanish 

MLK Scholar | Participant Cross Cultural Leadership Retreat | Facilitator Social Action Leadership Retreat | Student Leadership Consultant Office of Student Engagement | National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) | Certified Peer Educator Mind, Body, Spirit Section Head | EMBRACE Publication | MLK Scholar Program Representative| Student of Color Coalition | Certified Community Herbalist | People's Medicine School | IC Voices: Activism is Our Legacy | Researcher School of H&S Summer Scholar | Volunteer Community Unity Music Education Program (CUMEP) | Stand-in Art Director  CUMEP | President's Fellow | Moderator of Let the Overflow Be Enuf | BOLD Women's Leadership Network. 

"I have intentionally crafted my higher education experience to reflect my dedication to social justice and grassroots organizing both within and beyond the institution. Throughout my college career, I have remained rooted in the importance of being people oriented"

Cyepress Rite, Class of 2022

Amir Tazi

Amir is standing in an off white room with hardwood floors, smiling at the camera. He is wearing a sweatshirt with the American flag on the front and a tan hat.

Major: English | Minor: African Diaspora Studies Women and Gender Studies 

Black Student Union Publications Coordinator | Embrace Magazine Social Media Coordinator | Empowering Blackness at Ithaca College | OURstory is not HIStory | Brother 4 Brother | Club Basketball team | Rebuilding Public Safety Task Force via the City of Ithaca.