Announcements & News
(updated February 8, 2010)
Webpage Makeover/2010 Frida Kahlo Awardees | Honorary Presidents | National Agreement with ANLE | Election of National Officers | History Project | En el foco | Twitter & Facebook | New Scholarship Partners | Informative Session 2010 | Triennial Convention 2010 | Annual Reports | Entre Nosotros | In Fond Memory | Informative Session | Grants, Scholarships & Awards | Going Green... | Career Services | Chapter Starter Kit | Executive Committee Meeting | Ritual | Featured Chapter | Merchandise | Chapter Anniversary Certificates | Entre Nosotros | The Orders
Webpage
Makeover and 2010 Frida Kahlo Awardees
To commemorate the
anniversary of the founding of our national website (February 1999), Sigma
Delta Pi proudly announces a new look for its main
webpage and the 2010 co-recipients of the Frida
Kahlo Award for their outstanding websites: Illinois
Wesleyan University and Truman
State University.
New
Honorary Presidents Elected
Professors Susan
Carvalho of the University of Kentucky, Domnita Dumitrescu of California State
University-Los Angeles and Gerardo Piña-Rosales of Lehman College-CUNY will
become Sigma Delta Pi's newest Honorary Presidents when their appointments
are officially conferred on Monday, July 12, 2010 in Guadalajara, Mexico during
the Society's Triennial Convention. Congratulations to these three distinguished
supporters of Sigma Delta Pi for this exclusive honor. Click
here for complete list of past appointees.
Sigma
Delta Pi Partners with ANLE
Sigma Delta Pi is
very pleased to announce that it has signed a formal agreement with the North
American Academy of the Spanish Language (ANLE) for future collaboration
and advocacy of the two organizations' missions. As part of this agreement,
and beginning in April 2010, ANLE will provide Sigma Delta Pi with 10 copies
annually--for an initial period of three years--of its book on Gabriela Mistral
for the purpose of distributing one copy to each winner of Sigma Delta Pi's
Gabriela Mistral Award. An Oversight Committee
comprising Sigma Delta Pi's National President and Executive Secretary-Treasurer
along with two members of the ANLE will be charged with identifying other
areas, activities and projects of mutual interest. Sigma Delta Pi extends
a special thanks to Dr. Gerardo Piña-Rosales, Director of the ANLE, for his
indispensable role in finalizing this important accord.
Election
of National Officers for 2010-13 Triennium
Each active chapter
of Sigma Delta Pi--"active" is a chapter with at least one initiation
ceremony in the past three years--will have the opportunity to vote for National
President and Regional Vice President. Please check back here in early February
2010 to download the offical ballot.
History
Project
As the end of 2009
also marks the close of Sigma Delta Pi's 90th anniversary (1919-2009), the
Executive Committee launches one more commemorative effort with the Society's
"History Project." The idea for this new, very important endeavor
was sparked by Dr. Michael P. Harrison, Chapter Adviser of Monmouth College
(Illinois), who shared with the National Office a copy of the 1945 version
of the Sigma Delta Pi Ritual. Unfortunately, our national archives in Charleston,
S.C. did not contain this version until Professor Harrison's generous donation
of one of the originals. The "Sigma Delta Pi History Project" aims
to recover many other historical documents that have been lost and/or misplaced
over the past 90 years due to various leadership changes, the multiple transfers
of our national archives across state borders, house fires, etc. As Dr. Harrison
brought to our attention last week, many other chapters besides Monmouth College
likely have similar historic "gems" that would indeed fill many
of the current holes of our national records. In addition, since 2002 Sigma
Delta Pi has been working on a comprehensive History that will be published
as a book in 2019 to commemorate our 100th anniversary (it will be combined
with T. Earle Hamilton's 1994 publication that commemorated Sigma Delta Pi's
75th anniversary). Additional historic information will be invaluable for
this project. Consequently, we kindly request of our "older" chapters
(those founded before 1974) to search their local records/archives for the
following:
1) any versions of the initiation ritual prior to 1945 and between 1946-1973;
2) any national "Manual" published prior to 1945 (referred to in
the 1945 Ritual);
3) besides the 1945 ritual, all national Sigma Delta Pi publications prior
to 1965, including any and all issues of our national journal Entre Nosotros;
4) any correspondence between your chapter and the national office prior to
1958;
5) any other historical documentation prior to 1974 not included above.
If you find any of these
materials, please send a copy (or the original if you are comfortable with
donating it to our national archives) to Professor Mark P. Del Mastro at the
following address:
Modern Languages, Literatures & Cultures
The Citadel
171 Moultrie Street
Charleston, S.C. 29409-6430
Six years ago Sigma Delta Pi acquired a secure storage area on The Citadel's
campus where all our national archives are currently stored safely. Your contributions,
therefore, will be well guarded.
Finally,
this history project will continue well through 2010 since we understand that
chapters will certainly need time to search for the relevant materials.
En
el foco
Sigma Delta Pi congratulates
the Pi Zeta Chapter of the University
of Northern Colorado, the subject of En
el foco for the 2009-10 academic year. En el foco highlights a chapter
annually for exemplary activities that reflect the mission of the Society.
Twitter
& Facebook
Sigma Delta Pi is
now on Twitter, a real-time
short messaging service that works over multiple networks and devices. From
your mobile phone, you can follow Sigma Delta Pi's most recent activities.
Our website will also still publish the most up-to-date information on the
Society, but Twitter
gives us one more way of staying in touch with our membership. Visit the Twitter
website to learn how to sign up for this service. When searching for us on
Twitter, please type "SigmaDeltaPi" without spaces.
You can also join us on Facebook
to interact, exchange ideas and network with other members and friends of
Sigma Delta Pi.
New
Scholarship Partners
Sigma Delta Pi warmly
welcomes two new partners to its Undergraduate Summer Scholarship Program:
the Universidad de las Americas
Puebla (UDLAP) in Mexico and the Universidad
de Alcalá de Henares (UAH) in Spain. The UDLAP will offer one undergraduate
scholarship in Mexico for six weeks: May 14-June 24, 2010; the UAH will offer
five undergraduate scholarships for study during a semester (spring or fall
of 2010-11 academic year) or the summer (June or July 2010). Further details
and the downloadable application for Sigma Delta Pi's 2010 Undergraduate Scholarship
Program are available at www.sigmadeltapi.org/schol.html.
Informative
Session at the 2010 Kentucky Foreign Language Conference (KFLC)
The 8th annual
Sigma Delta Pi Informative Session will be held on Friday, April 16 at 10:30am
at the 63rd Kentucky
Foreign Language Conference (April 15-17, 2010) Please plan to send a
chapter representative. On Friday, April 16 at 6:30pm, Sigma Delta Pi will
sponsor a wine and cheese social for all our attendees and special guests
at the Crown Plaza Hotel, Lexington, KY (room TBA).
Triennial
Convention 2010
Mark your
calendars now for Sigma Delta Pi's Triennial Convention in 2010 to be held
at the Presidente
InterContinental Guadalajara in Guadalajara, Mexico in conjunction with
the AATSP Conference on
July 10-13. Further details including exact time and date of the convention
will be available in early 2010. All chapters are invited to send delegates
to this important meeting.
Annual
Reports
The
2009-10 annual report form should be completed
and submitted along with all supporting materials via e-mail to delmastrom@citadel.edu
by Sunday, June 6, 2010. Paper submissions are no longer accepted. These reports
are used to determine several national awards and to help the national headquarters
keep its database current. Information submitted with the annual report is
not intended for publication in our annual, Entre Nosotros.
Submissions to be considered for publication in Entre Nosotros
should be e-mailed separately from the annual report to delmastrom@citadel.edu.
Entre
Nosotros, Spring 2009 Edition
Commemorating 70 years of publication
(1939-2009) and honoring the late Richard E. Chandler, the spring 2009 issue
of Entre Nosotros
is now available online: http://www.sigmadeltapi.org/en.html.
One hard copy was sent to each chapter in early May.
To submit
material for possible publication in Entre Nosotros
(in Spanish only), please forward by e-mail to Dr.
Mark P. Del Mastro; all submissions must be accompanied by the name of
the chapter adviser. Photographs must be in .jpg or .gif format and accompanied
by the names of the individuals pictured and the chapter.
Richard
E. Chandler and James Castañeda
Sigma Delta Pi mourns
the loss of Richard E. Chandler, Honorary President and President Emeritus,
who left this life on December 11, 2008 at the age of 92. Dr. Chandler was
honored in the spring 2009 issue of Entre
Nosotros. Click
here for his online obituary. We also remember
James Castañeda, Honorary President, who died on Saturday, November
1, 2008 at the age of 75.
Going
Green...
To reduce its carbon
footprint, Sigma Delta Pi continues to rely on electronic formats in place
of paper. The distribution of only electronic versions of application forms
for our Undergraduate Summer Scholarship, Graduate Research Grant and Charter
Project Grant programs is an example. Also, in 2009 Sigma Delta Pi will only
make available one hard copy of its annual, Entre
Nosotros, for each chapter. Because electronic versions of this publication
have been available online since 2003 (www.sigmadeltapi.org/en.html),
it is no longer necessary to print excessive copies. Beginning in 2010, chapter
annual reports will only be accepted electronically. Do you have ideas to
help us continue our "green" efforts? E-mail them to delmastrom@citadel.edu.
Career
Services
Sigma Delta Pi is
pleased to announce its partnership with Experience,
Inc. to provide Sigma Delta Pi members FREE career opportunities and services
through its new website: sigmadeltapi.experience.com.
All members are encouraged to take advantage of this newest benefit of Sigma
Delta Pi membership.
Chapter
Starter Kit
Thanks to
Kalamazoo Regalia,
Sigma Delta Pi's only authorized merchandise seller, new and veteran chapters
of the Society may purchase the Sigma
Delta Pi Chapter Starter Kit (click here for purchase) for initiation
ceremonies. The kit includes two 8" solid brass candle holders, one solid
brass pillar candle holder, the red hardcover chapter registry and the Sigma
Delta Pi altar runner. Purchased separately, these items sell for $139.35,
but the complete set is specially priced at $109.35.
Executive
Committee Meeting
On June 12-14,
2009, members of the Executive Committee convened in Charleston, S.C. for
their annual meeting where various national awards were also determined. See
the "Scholarships, Awards and Recognitions" link of the main
page for most recent awardees. The 2010 Executive Committee Meeting will
be held in Guadalajara, Mexico in conjunction with the AATSP
Conference on July 10-13 and prior to Sigma Delta Pi's Triennial Convention.
Ritual
Thanks to
the work of the national Ritual Investigative Committee (Dr. Charles B. Moore,
Committee Chair, Gardner-Webb University; Dr. Raysa Amador, Adelphi University;
Dr. Maria Redmon, University of Central Florida; Dr. Maria Trillo, Western
New Mexico University; Dr. John C. Wilcox, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign)
in the spring of 2007 and the Ritual Revision Committee (Dr. Charles B. Moore,
Committee Chair, Gardner-Webb University; Dr. Michelle Hamilton, University
of California, Irvine; Dr. Antonio A. Fernández-Vázquez, Virginia
Tech University; Dr. Marta Loyola, Lakeland College) in the fall of 2007,
the Executive Committee of Sigma Delta Pi published a revised initiation ritual
that is available online (e-mail delmastrom@citadel.edu
for access). This new ritual does NOT replace the 1974 versions, but simply
serves as an alternative. All the approved rituals are currently available
online, and a new consolidated booklet containing the 1974 and 2007 versions
may be purchased for $3 each: simply write in this item on the standard order
form for pins and certificates.
Merchandise:
Apparel
and Ceremony Paraphernalia
Kalamazoo Regalia is the only authorized
seller of Sigma Delta Pi's official honor cords (for graduating members),
stoles (for SDP-related ceremonies and/or graduations), induction ceremony
items, apparel and select paraphernalia for our interested chapters and members.
Online purchasing is available at www.honorgrads.com.
El
repostero
Sigma Delta
Pi banners are available to chapters through our National Office. For further
details and a photo, visit the following link: El
repostero.
Chapter Anniversary
Certificates:
Chapters that
plan to commemorate founding anniversaries are asked to notify the National
Office three weeks prior to the event. Upon request, a complimentary
certificate will be sent to chapters for each 10, 25 and 50 year celebrations.
Please inform the Executive Secretary-Treasurer at mark.delmastro@citadel.edu.
Grants, Scholarships and Awards:
Chapter
Project Grants
Sigma Delta Pi is pleased
to announce its Chapter Project Grant Program for 2010. Eligible chapters of
active status--at least one induction of new members in the past three years
to include 09-10--are invited to apply for one of four grants of $300 each to
support a chapter project that complements the mission of Sigma Delta Pi during
the 2010-11 academic year. The application deadline is May 1, 2010. For
further information, please download and review Form
1-B of the application; click
here for the downloadable application. The Executive Committee reserves
the right to award less than four grants as deemed appropriate.
Sigma Delta
Pi congratulates the recipients of the 2009 Charter Project Grant Program: Emporia
State University and Scripps College.
Graduate
Research Grants
Sigma Delta Pi will award three
(3) graduate research grants of $2000 each for use during the summer of 2010
and the 2010-11 academic year. Click
here for downloadable application packet. The faculty advisor of chapters
with more than one applicant must complete the following Ranking
Form. Only graduate students in Hispanic Studies who are active members
of Sigma Delta Pi are eligible to apply for these grants.
Undergraduate
Summer Scholarships
Sigma Delta Pi will award 30
undergraduate study abroad scholarships for use in 2010. Click
here for downloadable application packet. The faculty advisor of chapters
with more than one applicant must complete the following Ranking
Form. Only undergraduate students who are active members of Sigma Delta
Pi are eligible to apply for these annual awards.
The
Richard E. Chandler Scholarship:
This award is
named in memory of Honorary President and President Emeritus, Richard E. Chandler,
who died December 11, 2008 at the age of 92. Chandler served as President
of Sigma Delta Pi for a total of fifteen years (1977-92) during which time 141
new chapters were installed.
The highest ranked
applicant who accepts one of the undergraduate summer scholarships
for study in Spain will receive this award. The scholarship will consist
of a supplement to the basic award.
The
T. Earle Hamilton Scholarship:
This award is
named in memory of Honorary President and President Emeritus, T. Earle Hamilton,
who died October 2, 1996. Hamilton served as President of Sigma Delta
Pi for a total of fifteen years (1960-68 and 1972-77). He wrote and published
a history of Sigma Delta Pi in 1994-95 to commemorate our seventy-fifth anniversary.
The highest ranked
applicant who accepts one of the undergraduate scholarships
for study in Spanish America will receive this award. The scholarship
will consist of a supplement to the basic award.
Internship
Scholarships
The Washington
Internship Institute (WII) and the Association
of College Honor Societies (ACHS) are pleased to announce that all inducted
members of Sigma Delta Pi are eligible to receive a $500 merit-based scholarship
for the ACHS/WII Internship Program. To obtain this scholarship, eligible students
must 1) apply and be accepted to the Capital Experience, Embassy Scholars, or
Go Green program; 2) obtain the signature of your chapter adviser on the Intern
Profile. WII will then verify your membership with the national office of Sigma
Delta Pi. Please note these two steps must be successfully completed prior to
the beginning of your semester in DC in order for you to receive an ACHS/WII
scholarship; 3) apply the $500 scholarship to WII's tuition or housing fees.
The ACHS/WII scholarship can be combined with other WII scholarships as long
as the cumulative award does not exceed WII's tuition. See www.wiidc.org/costs.php
for application and further details.
El
Premio Frida Kahlo
This award will be presented yearly
to a chapter for its outstanding website. The 2010 recipient will be announced
in early February.
To be considered
for the 2011 honor, chapters must e-mail their current website addresses to
the Executive Secretary-Treasurer
by December 1, 2010. Websites will be judged on the basis of content, navigability,
appearance, innovation and current maintenance. For guidelines in designing
your websites, please click here.
El Premio José Martel
Once every
three years, at the national triennial convention (next will be in 2010), Sigma
Delta Pi honors one of our most outstanding chapter advisers with a check for
$1000.00 and a beautiful plaque. Click
here for a list of past recipients.
A nominee for the José Martel Award
must have served at one college or university as a successful chapter adviser
for five consecutive years with at least one initiation each year, be currently
serving as chapter adviser, and be nominated by a chapter or by a member of
the Executive Council. The nomination must document the accomplishments of the
adviser in connection with the chapter, as well as the adviser's other academic
attainments. Supporting letters/e-mails from the nominee's dean and another
high college official must accompany the nomination. It is suggested that the
activities of the chapter during the past five years be enumerated and described,
and that a résumé detailing the nominee's professional activities be included.
For the 2010 award, the complete nomination packet must be sent by April
1, 2010 via e-mail to the Executive Secretary-Treasurer at delmastrom@citadel.edu.
Incomplete nominations will not be considered.
The Premio José Martel commemorates
the service of Dr. José Martel, who died August 22, 1979, at the age of 96,
after serving Sigma Delta Pi loyally and unselfishly for over half a century
in many capacities: chapter adviser, vice president, honorary president, faithful
counselor, orator on national occasions, and polished author in the rewriting
of parts of our ritual and in the preparation of certificates of award. The
José Martel Award was first presented to Dr. Lucía D. Bonilla of Hunter College,
CUNY in December 1971 at the triennial convention in New York.
El
Premio Minaya Álvar-Fáñez
Each year, Sigma Delta Pi may choose
one Chapter Adviser for the Premio Minaya Álvar-Fáñez for exemplary initiative
in encouraging and assisting with chapter activities. The honoree will receive
a plaque and a check for $100 and will be chosen on the basis of the Annual
Reports that each active chapter submits at the end of the academic year.
El
Premio Gabriela Mistral
Any active chapter
may nominate one outstanding student per year for El Premio Gabriela Mistral.
The awardee, who may be either a graduate or undergraduate student, must be
an active member of Sigma Delta Pi, as defined in the By-laws.
Nominations, together with supporting documentation, including several letters
of recommendation and a current transcript, should be sent to the Executive
Secretary-Treasurer. Winners will be given a handsome certificate.
Capítulos
de Honor y Mérito / Honor Chapters
Each summer,
outstanding chapters will be designated Capítulos de Honor y Mérito
and will receive a special certificate and recognition on the national
website and in Entre Nosotros. The top
Honor Chapters will also receive a credit to be applied to future orders of
pins and certificates. All Honor Chapters will be selected on the basis of Annual
Reports that each chapter is asked to submit at the end of the academic
year.
El
Premio Ignacio y Sophie Galbis
The Premio
Ignacio y Sophie Galbis is named in memory of Ignacio Galbis, former Executive
Secretary-Treasurer, who, along with his wife Sophie, served Sigma Delta Pi
for more than two decades with uncommon love, dedication and efficiency.
This award will be presented each year to a chapter whose Annual
Report of activities is judged to be indicative of genuinely outstanding
work in the furtherance of our purposes.
El
Premio Octavio Paz
Chapters that
maintain Capítulo de Honor y Mérito status for a complete triennium will
receive El Premio Ocavio Paz. The inaugural award was announced for 11
chapters on July 31, 2004 at Sigma Delta Pi's Triennial Convention in Acapulco,
Mexico.
El
Premio Jorge Luis Borges
Established
in 2007 as one of Sigma Delta Pi's most prestigious honors, this recognition
for lifetime achievement is reserved for those persons who have demonstrated
sustained and exemplary dedication to the work of the Society. Nominations detailing
the candidate's relevant contributions must be sent to the Executive Secretary-Treasurer
by a chapter or a member of the Executive Council; awardees will be approved
by a majority vote of the Executive Committee, and the award presented in a
venue determined by the same committee. The inaugural recipients were Drs. Richard
E. Chandler and John H. LaPrade who were honored on August 4, 2007 at our Triennial
Convention in San Diego, CA.
The Orders:
La Orden de los Descubridores
One of the highest honors conferred by Sigma Delta Pi, the Order of the Discoverers
recognizes (1) outstanding teachers of Spanish or Hispanic studies at the college
or university level; (2) outstanding community-college or high-school teachers
of Spanish, with a proven record of excellence in teaching, who were elected
to membership in Sigma Delta Pi while in college; (3) Chapter Advisers and regional
Vice Presidents who have given distinguished service to Sigma Delta Pi; (4)
others--such as government officials, professional people, and university personnel--who
have served the cause of Sigma Delta Pi in an exceptional way.
Nomination to this order may be made
by a local chapter (by unanimous vote of all active members and approval of
the Chapter Adviser), or by a national or regional officer, and must be sent
together with a detailed supporting letter and résumé of the nominee, to the
Executive Secretary-Treasurer. He will examine the nomination and notify the
nominating chapter or officer of his decision within three weeks, unless additional
information is needed. If this award is granted, the nominating party must purchase
the plaque and confer the honor at an appropriate ceremony of a local chapter.
La
Orden de Don Quijote
The highest honor conferred by Sigma Delta Pi, the Order of Don Quijote recognizes
(1) nationally or internationally distinguished scholars in the field of Hispanic
studies; (2) distinguished teachers of Spanish who are employed in an accredited
four-year college or university, or retired from such service, and have published
extensively in the field of Hispanic studies; and (3) college officials, members
of the clergy, officers of service clubs or fraternal organizations, members
of the judicial, legislative, or executive branches of our federal or state
governments, and other such professional people who have served our cause in
a very distinguished manner and who would honor us by accepting this award.
Nominations for this award must be
sent via e-mail with detailed supporting letters and a résumé of the nominee
to the Executive Secretary-Treasurer
who will then submit the nomination to a committee consisting of at least three
past inductees of this Order. If this award is granted, the nominating party
will receive an emblem and plaque (no charge) and confer the honor at an appropriate
ceremony of a local chapter. Please allow at least 2-3 weeks for the review
of the nomination.