While the SDCCD has had a presence in the annual parade since it began more than 40 years ago, this will be the seventh year the district marches together as a contingent, and the first year a student was tasked with creating the event t-shirt. Members of the district’s Board of Trustees will take part in the celebration, along with representatives from City, Mesa, and Miramar, and the College of Continuing Education. Free T-shirts will be provided to the first 400 SDCCD participants.
“Five different concepts were pitched and the interpretation of each design was so powerful,” said Andrew “Luke” Menchaca, SDCCD’s Dean of Outreach and Student Affairs, who helped lead the student focused initiative. “Going through this process for twelve weeks really showed how much our students and employees care about our community and togetherness for our people.”
The idea for a student-made design came from a discussion with the SDCCD District Queer Alliance, and a group of students representing all four of the colleges who amplified a need for more LGBTQIA+ unity on the college campuses. Menchaca saw the request as an opportunity to partner with City College’s Design program to create meaningful art with LGBTQIA+ students.
Design Professor Sean Bacon was eager to support the project but was adamant to have students involved every step of the way. “In a career technical education program, you learn by doing and I couldn’t have presented a better real-world opportunity than this. It was important to me that the designers be in every room to advocate for their work,” he said.
Bacon selected three students to imagine this year’s SDCCD pride parade shirt; Therese Merrique, 26, Monica Lopez, 35, and Jaimie McKay, 34
To bring the design to life, the City College team held discovery sessions with the SDCCD Pride Committee, inclusive of students and employees from City, Mesa, Miramar, and the College of Continuing Education. Merrique, Lopez, and McKay pitched their projects multiple times in front of the SDCCD District Queer Alliance and were invited to present the top six concepts to Chancellor Gregory Smith and Chancellor’s Cabinet.
Merrique’s sketch was named the winning design, which features a clean combination of a rainbow’s arches, the infinity symbol, and the word “unity” highlighted in the word “community.” The arrangement of the arches also resembles a wave and alludes to the name of the illustration, “Community Wave.'' The design is printed on four brightly colored shirts to represent the distinct LGBTQIA+ rainbow, another new style choice for the SDCCD.
“Having the highest level of support and guidance from the Chancellor to our professionals in identifying a student designer to carry it all the way through to the parade shows where our district stands and ultimately our commitment to our LGBTQIA+ populations. It’s very influential,” said Menchaca.
Bacon agreed. “This is the first time the City College Design program has produced anything for the district. I am really proud of our designers, having to consider four college campuses adds another layer of complexity. The Community Wave t-shirt will gain high visibility during pride and there is nothing more exciting than showcasing your work on a stage like that.”
The annual San Diego Pride Parade is the largest single-day civic engagement in the region and is among the largest in the United States, attracting over 250,000 people. The accomplishment is something Merrique wouldn't have imagined this early on in her studies.
She enrolled at City College in spring 2024 following her service in the U.S. Navy as a photojournalist and after dabbling with a few courses at a private design school. “When Platt College closed indefinitely, I was a little lost. I still wanted to go to school but I wanted to make sure I would be able to finish my degree somewhere stable and get the education I wanted,” said Merrique. “I had a really good feeling about City College. My experience has been great, the instructors are in the weeds with you and actually want to make sure you succeed.”
Merrique was taking a beginning typography course when she was selected to design for the SDCCD. “Therese really rose to the task. She listened well and delivered what the client wanted. Her idea to utilize arches as rainbows into an infinity sign and typography to depict the word unity inside community was a clever decision to make,” said Bacon.
Merrique says the task holds meaning beyond the parade. “I’m proud to be part of this! It brings me joy to see the design on shirts people will wear at the parade and elsewhere afterward. To me, Community Wave symbolizes the connection between every person in the LGBTQIA+ community and also the connection to our allies which forms a larger whole. It’s reassuring to know that the district operates in allyship and supports the community with enthusiasm.”
Along with the t-shirts the SDCCD pride float will pay tribute to this year’s parade theme, “Making History Now.” On board the colorful display, 20 students and employees will hold a timeline of large polaroids of major milestones the district and its colleges has led in support of LGBTQIA+ visibility since its beginnings from the inaugural raising the Intersex Inclusive Progressive Pride Flag at the district office, the Pride Center grand opening at Mesa College, the Lavender affinity graduation celebration at Miramar College, and the College of Continuing Education’s pride kick-off event.
The parade is set to start at 10 a.m. Saturday, July 20. It follows a 1.5-mile-route beginning at the Hillcrest Pride Flag at University Avenue and Normal Street, continues west on University Avenue, turns south on Sixth Avenue and left onto Balboa Drive and ends at Quince Drive.