Advisory — University of Lethbridge to raise Progress Pride flag on June 18

Monday, June 17, 2024

The inaugural winner of the VandenHoek Schlachter Pride Award will be announced at the flag raising

Everyone is welcome to attend as the University of Lethbridge raises the Progress Pride flag on Tuesday, June 18, at 11 a.m. outside the Students’ Union Building by the Aperture Drive bus loop.

The theme for this year’s Pride Month is Embrace Empathy: Foster Understanding. Join the ULethbridge community as it celebrates the diversity of 2SLGBTQ+ communities, acknowledges 2SLGBTQ+ history and recognizes the achievements of queer and trans individuals and groups. ULethbridge is proud to celebrate Pride Month, especially in these times with continued polarization on gender and social justice issues.

As part of the celebration, ULethbridge will also announce the inaugural winner of the VandenHoek Schlachter Pride Award. This award is part of a first-of-its-kind endowment fund announced in June 2023, established through a generous donation from ULethbridge alumni Kurt Schlachter (BSc ’00, LL.D. ’24) and his spouse Jason VandenHoek (BMgt ’05). Everyone in attendance is invited to a community barbecue that will follow the formal portion of the event.

“Celebrating Pride Month gives us the opportunity to recognize the importance of having a safe, inclusive and equitable campus,” says Martha Mathurin-Moe, ULethbridge vice-provost, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion. “We want to ensure, not just during Pride Month but all year long, that 2SLGBTQ+ students, staff, faculty and community members feel welcome, included and safe on campus and that their voices are heard on the issues that impact them.” 

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Contact: 

Trevor Kenney, Manager of Public Affairs 
403-329-2710
403-360-7639 (cell)
@ULethbridge

Our University’s Blackfoot name is Iniskim, meaning Sacred Buffalo Stone. The University is located in traditional Blackfoot Confederacy territory. We honour the Blackfoot people and their traditional ways of knowing in caring for this land, as well as all Indigenous Peoples who have helped shape and continue to strengthen our University community.