What is Éxitos?
Éxitos is the Carolina Latinx Center’s Graduation Ceremony, held at the end of each Spring semester. The annual ceremony honors graduating Latinx students and celebrates their accomplishments. It is also where we hold the Carolina Latinx Center awards, which recognizes outstanding members for their contributions and demonstrations of the Center’s values.
Carolina Latinx Center Awards
Each Éxitos, the Carolina Latinx Center honors five outstanding UNC Latinx students, faculty, staff, and community members. Awards are given to people who have demonstrated the Center’s five pillars. The Éxitos Awards are the following:
The Diversity Award recognizes a person who has worked to create an inclusive community at UNC. We proclaim that our diversity is what unites us and the CLC works toward enhancing and supporting diversity at Carolina – and this recipient exemplifies this value in all facets of their life.
The Innovation Award recognizes a person who has generated new scholarship to help in approaching a problem or developed new insights and research within their field. Latinx people have a growing presence in our campus, community, and country; and we honor the innovative spirit our comunidad has to offer.
The Empowerment Award recognizes a person who has built scholarship beyond the classroom and developed an awareness and celebration about Latinx identity. The Carolina Latinx Center aims to uplift and empower students and faculty by providing a space for collaboration.
The Familia Award recognizes a person who has built and maintained deep connections within our community. At the Carolina Latinx Center, we are committed to nurturing our familia so that it will be sustained and will inspire connection to the Carolina community across many generations.
The Orgullo Award recognizes a person who has embraced and entered spaces of service, scholarship, leadership, or advocacy with strength and joy. Our center takes orgullo in who we are, where we are from, and where we plan on going and this recipient embodies this value in how they show up for the work.
Our Award Winners of the 2021-2022 Éxitos Awards are Juan Castro (pictured far left) and Melanie Godinez-Cedillo (pictured center left) for the Familia Award, Erika Rubi Franco Quiroz (pictured center right) for the Diversity Award, Dr. Yuliana Rodriguez-Vongsavanh (pictured far right) for the Empowerment Award, Nicolás De la Cerda (not pictured) for the Innovation Award, and Dr. Geovani Ramírez (not pictured) for the Orgullo Award.