Sigma Tau Delta
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| Sigma Tau Delta | |
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| Type | Honor Society |
| Motto | Sincerity, Truth, Design |
| Colors | Black |
| Flower | Red Rose |
| Members | 9,000 annually collegiate |
| Homepage | http://www.english.org |
Sigma Tau Delta is an international collegiate honor society for students of English. It presently has over 800 active chapters located in Europe, the Caribbean, the United States, and 1 chapter in the Middle East (Kuwait), with more than 1,000 faculty sponsors. The organization inducts over 9,000 new members annually.[1]
Sigma Tau Delta's purpose as an honorary society is to promote literature and writing and to advance the study of the written word. Members gather annually in the spring at the international convention to present papers and share experiences and ideas within the English discipline. The Society offers a number of scholarships, internships, and awards as well as publication opportunities in its journals The Rectangle and The Sigma Tau Delta Review.
Sigma Tau Delta also sponsors The National English Honor Society (NEHS), which serves students and faculty in high schools throughout the country and provides an outreach to thousands of students and faculty who share a commitment to excellence in English language arts.[1]
The central office of Sigma Tau Delta is located at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Illinois.[1]
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[edit] Organization
The Society is divided into six regions: Eastern, Far Western, High Plains, Midwestern, Southern, and Southwestern. Each region has three elected regional officials: a Regent, a student representative, and an associate student representative.
The Regents are voting members of the Board of Directors, which also includes the society president, immediate past president, vice-president/president-elect, historian, treasurer, and student advisors.
Serving the Board of Directors in a non-voting capacity are the executive director, publications' director, director of communications and chapter development, an alumni representative, and the NEHS director.
The organization is a member of the Association of College Honor Societies.[1]
[edit] Membership
Student membership is available to students currently enrolled in four-year colleges and universities that have active chapters; applications are done through the student's local chapter. Candidates for undergraduate membership must have completed at least three semesters or five quarters of college work and a minimum of two college courses in English language or literature beyond the usual requirements in freshman English. They must also have a minimum of a B or equivalent grade point average in English and must rank at least in the highest 35 percent of their class in general scholarship. (Local chapters may raise, but not lower, these criteria.) Candidates for graduate membership must be enrolled in a graduate program in English or one of its specializations, have completed six semester hours of graduate work or the equivalent, and have a minimum grade point average of 3.3 on a 4.0 scale.[2]
[edit] History
Sigma Tau Delta was founded by Judson Q. Owen at Dakota Wesleyan University and was officially recognized by its Greek initials on May 1, 1924.[1]
[edit] Conventions
The Society organizes a convention every year in March, at which members present original fiction, poetry, critical essays, and personal non-fiction. Recent international conventions have been held in Cincinnati, Ohio (2003), Daytona Beach, Florida (2004), Kansas City, Missouri (2005), Portland, Oregon (2006), Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, (2007), Louisville, Kentucky, (2008), Minneapolis, Minnesota (2009), and St. Louis, Missouri (2010).[3] The 2011 convention was held in Pittsburgh, and had over 1,000 attendees, and featured speakers Jacqueline Woodson, Lorene Cary, Kay Ryan, and Dave Eggers.[4]
[edit] The National English Honor Society (NEHS
The National English Honor Society (NEHS) is sponsored by Sigma Tau Delta. High schools can petition for a local chapter. Individuals may be inducted through these chapters as a member of NEHS.[5]
The NEHS awards up to $16,000 in scholarships annually.[6][7]
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Sigma Tau Delta: The International English Honor Society
- Sigma Tau Delta International Convention
- The National English Honor Society
- Association of College Honor Societies: Sigma Tau Delta
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This article relies on references to primary sources or sources affiliated with the subject, rather than references from independent authors and third-party publications. Please add citations from reliable sources. (January 2007) |
