SUNY Chancellor King Announces Recipient of the Second Annual Harvey Milk Scholarship Award for Student Leadership in LGBTQIA+ Community
October 31, 2025
State University of New York Upstate Medical University Student Lianne De La Cruz is This Year’s Recipient; Photo Available Here
Annual Scholarship Honors LGBTQIA+ Rights Champion and State University of New York at Albany Alumnus Harvey Milk
Albany, NY – State University of New York Chancellor John B. King Jr. today announced the recipient of the second annual Harvey Milk Award for Student Leadership, Lianne De La Cruz. This scholarship honors the legacy of Harvey Milk, a State University of New York at Albany class of 1951 alumnus and LGBTQIA+ rights champion, and recognizes an exceptional upper-level student who dedicates their time to growing LGBTQIA+ inclusiveness on their campus.
Lianne De La Cruz is currently a medical student attending the State University of New York Upstate Medical University. She is a queer Latina, first-generation graduate, and a child of immigrants. De La Cruz’s dedication to creating trauma-informed, identity-affirming mental health care for members of the LGBTQIA+ community is underscored by her work with The Rural and Underserved Service Track (TRUST), where she led educational initiatives about the LGBTQIA+ patient population for future healthcare providers.
De La Cruz also works to strengthen allyship and community engagement as she did in previous roles as Philanthropy & Outreach Chair for State University of New York Upstate Medical University’s Spectrum organization, and as Co-Chair of the Latino Medical Student Association’s mentorship program. She also promotes education and visibility in LGBTQIA+ mental health on a national level as Medical Student Committee Chair for the Association of LGBTQ+ Psychiatrists. De La Cruz is a driven student who is led by compassion and remains committed to advocacy, equity, representation, and systemic change. The Harvey Milk Award for Student Leadership will provide De La Cruz $2,000 to help fund her education and continue her mission.
“SUNY is honored to continue Harvey Milk’s legacy through the Harvey Milk Award for Student Leadership," said SUNY Chancellor King. “This year’s winner, Lianne De La Cruz, demonstrates a steadfast commitment to her mission to promote equity in mental health care for LGBTQIA+ and underserved communities. I congratulate De La Cruz and applaud her transformational work towards creating inclusivity in the medical field.”
SUNY Trustee Marcos Crespo and SUNY Trustee Camille Joseph Varlack, Co-Chairs of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee, said, “The Harvey Milk Award is a testament to the importance of uplifting and creating a sense of belonging for students in the LGBTQIA+ community throughout our campuses and beyond. We are so proud to recognize Lianne De La Cruz’s leadership in advancing equity and inclusion, increasing allyship, and promoting visibility in mental health care.”
Stuart Milk, President and Co-founder of the Harvey Milk Foundation, said, “Uncle Harvey’s legacy has stood as a proud and bright light for all people– and is a reminder that no barriers of race, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, religion, or physical infirmity will restrain their human spirit. The SUNY scholarship in his name is an important and vital element that keeps Harvey Milk’s hope thriving in our next generation of leaders.”
Mantosh Dewan, MD, State University of New York Upstate Medical University President and Alan and Marlene Presidential Chair said, “Compassion is a critical component of being a physician and Lianne De La Cruz leans on her experiences as a child of immigrants and an involved member of the LGBTQIA+ community to turn her compassion into action. Her impact at Upstate, work in rural areas, and commitment to underserved populations at the local and national levels make Lianne an inspirational force for good. SUNY has uplifted a most deserving student for the second annual SUNY Harvey Milk Scholarship Award.”
Lianne De La Cruz said, “I am so honored to be this year’s recipient of the SUNY Harvey Milk Scholarship Award for Student Leadership. Coming from a community that remains persistent in the face of oppression and uncertainty, it is the work of Harvey Milk and other activists that highlights the collective resilience and inspires me every day. Receiving this scholarship contributes to my mission of addressing the unique mental health disparities of LGBTQIA+ patients as a future psychiatrist. As I continue my training, I remain committed to spotlighting the strengths, joys, and legacies of LGBTQIA+ individuals like myself.”
State Assemblymember Alicia L. Hyndman said, "I extend my heartfelt congratulations to Lianne De La Cruz on being named this year’s Harvey Milk Scholarship recipient by SUNY Chancellor John B. King Jr. Lianne’s commitment to advancing trauma-informed, identity-affirming care for the LGBTQIA+ community exemplifies the values of inclusion, leadership, and compassion that define the State University of New York. Her impactful work with The Rural and Underserved Service Track (TRUST), Upstate Medical University’s Spectrum organization, the Latino Medical Student Association’s mentorship program, and the Association of LGBTQ+ Psychiatrists carries on the important legacy of Harvey Milk and showcases the profound impact of higher education in fostering equity and social change within our institutions and broader society."
State Assemblymember Harry Bronson said, “As a proud SUNY Alum and proud member of the LGBTQIA+ community, I offer my congratulations to Lianne De La Cruz for being awarded the Harvey Milk Scholarship Award for Student Leadership. Harvey Milk lived openly and proudly as his authentic self despite opposition, and this scholarship in his name continues to serve as a testament to SUNY’s steadfast commitment to promoting equity, justice, and opportunity by recognizing strong LGBTQIA+ student voices. With today’s attempts to erase our community at the federal level, student leaders like Lianne De La Cruz are integral to amplifying LGBTQIA+ experiences, ensuring we are treated with the dignity and humanity we deserve, and that we can continue to live as our authentic selves.”
State Assemblymember Harvey Epstein said, “Congratulations to Lianne De La Cruz on being the second annual Harvey Milk Scholarship recipient. It is so important to ensure everyone has access to trauma-informed, identity-affirming healthcare and Lianne’s leadership is inspiring.”
State University of New York at Cortland alum Vinny Aquino was the first recipient of the Harvey Milk Award for Student Leadership. A native of Uniondale, NY, Aquino was nominated, in part, for his efforts to help Pride become one of State University of New York at Cortland's most diverse student organizations on campus, not only in terms of gender and sexual orientation but also race, ethnicity, and ability. As a trans man and person with cerebral palsy, Aquino's lived experience helped inform his leadership. He is attending the State University of New York at Buffalo to pursue a dual master's degree in social work and public health.
About Harvey Milk
Harvey Milk, a State University of New York at Albany alumnus (then called the New York State College for Teachers at Albany), was a visionary civil and human rights leader who became one of the first openly gay elected officials in the United States when he won a seat on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1977. Milk's unprecedented and unapologetic proclamation of his authenticity as an openly gay candidate for public office and his subsequent election gave never-before experienced hope to LGBTQIA+ people everywhere at a time when the community was encountering widespread hostility and discrimination. His remarkable career was tragically cut short when he was assassinated nearly a year after taking office.
About the Harvey Milk Foundation
The Harvey Milk Foundation was established by Harvey's nephew Stuart Milk and Harvey's campaign manager, Anne Kronenberg. Stuart, like Harvey, has chosen to speak out as an openly gay advocate for not only the LGBTQIA+ community but also the collective communities of people who remain marginalized or diminished by inequality in the law as well as societal inequality. Harvey Milk believed broad public education and dialogue were paramount to his life's work as a civil rights leader and, as if riding on Harvey's shoulders, the Milk Foundation seeks to inspire individuals, communities and organizations to carry on his values in a timeless vision for a better world.
About the State University of New York
The State University of New York is the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States, and more than 95 percent of all New Yorkers live within 30 miles of any one of SUNY’s 64 colleges and universities. Across the system, SUNY has four academic health centers, five hospitals, four medical schools, two dental schools, a law school, the country’s oldest school of maritime, the state's only college of optometry, 12 Educational Opportunity Centers, over 30 ATTAIN digital literacy labs, and manages one US Department of Energy National Laboratory. In total, SUNY serves about 1.7 million students across its portfolio of credit- and non-credit-bearing courses and programs, continuing education, and community outreach programs. SUNY oversees nearly a quarter of academic research in New York. Research expenditures system-wide are nearly $1.5 billion in fiscal year 2025, including significant contributions from students and faculty. There are more than three million SUNY alumni worldwide, and annually one in three New Yorkers who earn a college degree is a SUNY alum. To learn more about how SUNY creates opportunities, visit suny.edu.
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