Student Leadership News

#DeltaCon Leader Board

2011-03-23T06:14:00.000-07:00

Here are the current leaders in the "Blog the Convention" contest. These scores are ONLY for the "blog the most" portion of the competition. A leader board will be posted for the "blog the best" section later in the week.

PLEASE NOTE: These numbers are as of 9 AM Wednesday. They are also unverified. If you feel there has been an error, please let us know, but scores will be reviewed and verified before winners are announced.

1. Robin Miller- 16 entries TIE
2. Jillian Phillips- 16 entries TIE
3. @cuppycakepie- 10 entries
4. Allie Reznik- 9 entries
5. Corey Hamilton- 7 entries

Levonne Castillo Candidate Profile

2011-03-21T13:22:00.000-07:00

Levonne Castillo
Candidate for Student Representative or Associate Student Representative, Southwestern Region

Sophomore, Wayland Baptist University
Eta Theta Chapter

Expected date of graduation: May 2013
Year Inducted: 2010

Positions, other memberships, offices, etc., currently or recently held: N/A

In no more than 500 words, explain why you are running for office and comment on any skills, experience, or personal qualities you possess that would contribute to your performing the following duties: promoting communication among chapters, producing official publications, assisting your Regent, serving on the Student Leadership Committee:

Hello, my name is Levonne Castillo. I would like to be considered for Student Representative for the Southwestern Region. I am a sophomore secondary English education major. I am what my school would consider a non-traditional student. I got my start late in life but feel this was probably the best time for me. I have been able to appreciate my blessings. I have a ten year old daughter and to date she has seen me through two missions trips, Ecuador and Kenya. I want her to be able to appreciate all kinds of students when she goes to school. Just because I cannot be a student athlete does not mean that I cannot find things to invest my time and participate on campus. I feel that as an older student I bring a unique perspective to my own Sigma Tau Delta organization. The idea of English, the language, the people, culture, is considered, refined, distinguished and excellent. This is how I hope that I can help my local chapter operate and bring some of that to our regional and national groups. I have been blessed with an extraordinary opportunity to be able to participate in this national convention. I have the support of my local chapter, my School of Languages and Literature, and Wayland Baptist University. I do not just mean financial. This support comes in the form of encouragement and pride from my chapter members and sponsors. I hope that I can be an example for all students that you really can do anything you put your mind to. I want my daughter and others to see that you have no limits. Our vice-president stepped-up and said she would stay with my daughter while I was gone. She loves to tell her friends about all the places I have been and what I have done and she says she can’t wait to go to some of these places too. This is the kind of support I know that I have and that can help add to our strength and hopefully be an inspiration to other chapters. I know that there are many responsibilities that come along with Student Representative and I know that with my experience as president of the Students in Free Enterprise chapter at Wayland Baptist University, I can take on this challenge. I was very excited to get my invitation to Sigma Tau Delta. It reassured me that my hard work paid off and I knew that I found an organization that I could really sink my teeth into so to speak. I appreciate all the work that has gone into this convention and would be honored to serve as Student Representative and help plan for next year’s convention.

Sincerely,

Levonne Castillo

Kristen Ditmore Candidate Profile

2011-03-21T09:51:00.000-07:00

Kristen Ditmore
Candidate for Student Representative or Associate Student Representative, Southwestern Region

Sophomore, Wayland Baptist University
Eta Theta Chapter

Expected date of graduation: May 2013
Year Inducted 2010

Positions, other memberships, offices, etc., currently or recently held: Historian for the Eta Theta Chapter Spring 2010 to currently

In no more than 500 words, explain why you are running for office and comment on any skills, experience, or personal qualities you possess that would contribute to your performing the following duties: promoting communication among chapters, producing official publications, assisting your Regent, serving on the Student Leadership Committee:

I am running for office because I enjoy being actively involved in my local chapter and want to get more involved at the regional level and above. I am minoring in Mass Communication and many of my classes have prepared me for taking on the role of either Student Representative or Assistant Student Representative. I am currently taking a feature writing class and I have already completed a news writing class so I would be more than able to produce and contribute to official publications. Furthermore, as my chapter’s Historian I have already written an article about some of the projects we have been doing this year that was published in our school paper. I am a very organized person and I know how to manage my time to allow me to complete any and all responsibilities that I am given and I am also very much a people person so I would have no problem contributing to the communication between chapters within my region. I do not take my responsibilities lightly and will do the very best job I possibly can if I am elected into office.

Lauren Brandeberry Candidate Profile

2011-03-09T13:12:00.000-08:00

Lauren Brandeberry
Candidate for Associate Alumni Representative

Master's Candidate, University of Central Oklahoma
Chi Gamma Chapter

Expected Date of Graduation:
May 2011
Year Inducted:
2008
Current Profession:
Seeking Employment
Joined Alumni Epsilon:
2011

How would you promote membership?
As the Student Advisor for the past two years, I have focused heavily on how to promote all of the benefits and opportunities Sigma Tau Delta provides. During this time I have also served on the Alumni and International Committee. I understand all how important promotion can be, the unique challenges that Alumni Epsilon faces, and the unique concerns of Alumni Epsilon members. I would take a two-pronged approach to promoting membership. I would try to spread the word about Alumni Epsilon and encourage people to join through the use of electronic resources. More importantly, however, I would try to entice people to join by creating and advocating for more benefits for alumni members and Alumni Epsilon members. I would like to see more opportunities for published alumni to showcase and promote their work, grants and awards more carefully tailored to the needs of alumni members, and greater networking opportunities for alumni.

How would you promote community among a diverse membership?
Through the expansion and promotion of alumni publications, improved utilization of Facebook and other social networking platforms, and increased responsiveness to the concerns of alumni members. As Alumni Epsiolon’s membership grows, I know we will face new and interesting challenges, but right now the organization is small enough that I can work directly with all of the members to promote the kinds of community activities that they would find interesting and beneficial, and I can respond directly and immediately to any concerns raised.

How would you utilize electronic resources in performance of your duties, especially as it relates to communication?
Thanks to my two years of experience as Student Advisor I am very familiar with Sigma Tau Delta’s Facebook page and the Alumni Facebook group, and I created the Student Leadership News blog, which includes the Alumni News. I would continue to utilize these platforms to disseminate information to the membership and to give them an avenue to communicate with me. I would also explore other resources such as web chats, Twitter, and Disapora.

Based on your knowledge of electronic newsletters, what vision do you have for an Alumni Epsilon edition?
I see the Alumni News publication as platform for many things; for informing the Alumni Epsilon membership of upcoming opportunities and events, for members to promote their own efforts and achievements, and for members to interact with each other and their representatives in an effort to grow the alumni community and respond directly to alumni concerns.

Janine Brooks Candidate Profile

2011-03-09T08:14:00.001-08:00

Janine Brooks
Candidate for Student Representative, High Plains Region

Master's Candidate, University of Nebraska at Omaha
Kappa Gamma Chapter

Expected Date of Graduation: May 2012
Year Inducted: 2009

Positions, other memberships, offices, etc., currently or recently held:
Associate Student Representative, High Plains Region, Sigma Tau Delta
Secretary, Alphabet Soup Kids (ASK), Inc. (an advocacy/family support organization in Nebraska)
Past Secretary, Family Advocacy Movement (advocacy group for disabled in Nebraska)

In no more than 500 words, explain why you are running for office and comment on any skills, experience, or personal qualities you possess that would contribute to your performing the following duties: promoting communication among chapters, producing official publications, assisting your Regent, serving on the Student Leadership Committee:

Greetings—

You start out by presenting a paper in front of a small audience of peers. Your palms are sweaty and your eyelids twitch, and you can almost hear the tinge of a quiver in that suddenly weakened voice. Afterward, you manage to squeak out the answers to a few questions. It is later in the conference when someone approaches you to compliment you on that paper you read that your confidence truly grows. Eventually, you move on to new commitments with larger audiences, but sometimes you want more.

That appears to be the case with me. I confess to presenting several papers at a few conferences and admit that the experience has helped me to grow considerably as a person improving not only my public speaking and leadership skills within Sigma Tau Delta, but also in the community to which I live.

My past experiences in leadership have been more on the public sector; presently I serve as a board member to Alphabet Soup Kids (ASK) and I advocate for the needs of autistic adults needing services in the state of Nebraska. Within Sigma Tau Delta, I currently serve as the Associate Student Representative to the High Plains Region. Over the last twelve months I have worked with Michelle Webb (our present SR) to help build the Fall and Spring newsletters, then prepare them for publication. I have also been active on the Facebook newsfeed page posting links to relevant news articles and such.

I am a graduate student at the University of Nebraska at Omaha studying English, Early British Literature. My intentions are to graduate with a M.A. in Spring 2012. I have met most of the graduate requirements, and am presently focused on earning certificates in both advanced and technical writing.

The biggest problem we have in the High Plains region has to do with communication. Except for a few letters sent out to the chapter presidents, there is little that seems to be said among ourselves. We are English people, part of our culture is to write – I say we need a discussion board on Sigma Tau Delta’s Facebook page. This allows for us to communicate better about what is happening in our chapters and allows for us to get to know each other better while satisfying that ‘English’ desire to write.

You will probably encounter me in one way or another helping at the conference. Alongside Andrew Moser, I presented “Web Tools” in the Student Leadership Workshop. I hope to stay busy through the conference contributing my time where needed as per my duties as Associate Student Representative.

Next year the adventure is down south in New Orleans, LA. It will be an amazing time as we all parade down the streets with the saints. Make me part of that number and have me represent you on the board as your Student Representative helping to plan another successful conference, serving as your voice on the board in its meetings.

Sincerely,

Janine M. Brooks

Candidate Profiles

2011-03-09T07:36:00.000-08:00

Every year at the annual convention, each region elects a Student Representative and an Associate Student Representative to represent student concerns to the Sigma Tau Delta Board of Directors. SRs and ASRs work closely with their Regent, helping with chapter recruitment and development, and they serve on the Student Leadership Committee, which produces the Student Leadership News blog. At convention, elections will also be held for the Alumni Representative and Associate Alumni Representative, who represent the concerns of alumni members and work closely with the student leaders.

From now until convention, we will be profiling candidates for the various offices, so that our members have a chance to learn a little about them and ask them questions. If you have a question for a candidate, please leave it in the comments section.

If you are interested in running for any of these offices, you still have time! Just go to http://english.org/sigmatd/leadership/index.shtml, read the job description and download the application. Email your application to the central office at sigmatd@niu.edu, or email sigmatd.sa1@gmail.com if you have any questions.

Online Author Chat

2011-03-04T15:46:00.000-08:00

The National English Honor Society chapter at Florida Virtual School is hosting a live online book discussion and chat with Sonia Nazario, the author of Enrique's Journey, this year's NEHS common reader. This chat is open to anyone who would like to attend.

The chat will be Thursday, March 10 at 11 am EST at https://sas.elluminate.com/m.jnlp?sid=679&password=M.ABEA2C38563F7716991339A937EE4E They suggest logging in 15 minutes early in case any software updates are needed to support the Java-based chat.

My Convention Experience

2011-03-01T14:44:00.000-08:00

by Michelle Webb

High Plains Student Representative, 2010-2011

Rho Psi

Fort Hays State University
Hays, KS

sigmatd.hp@gmail.com

It was November 2009. One of my English professors said that I should submit a paper to the Sigma Tau Delta convention. I had been inducted only the previous semester and wasn’t yet acclimated to the organization. As suggested, I went ahead and submitted two of my favorite papers—one about my grandfather and another about Willa Cather’s My Antonia. I clicked the “submit” button and went back into all-out student mode, placing the papers in the back of my mind. When the time came to release the names of those whose papers had been accepted, I was pleasantly surprised to find out that I would be presenting both my papers at the Sigma Tau Delta International Convention in St. Louis.

As I mentioned, I was new to the organization—and the only member of the Rho Psi chapter who was traveling to St. Louis. After fundraising and making arrangements for the eight-hour trek, my professor and I were off. I was incredibly nervous; I had never presented papers before, and I had never traveled without a close relative or friend. I was not journeying with any of my English buddies, nor was I meeting up with a familiar face at convention. You know the poor 6th grader who, in terror, treads into the middle school hallway for the first time? That was me.

I attended presentations, keynote speaker lectures, and sessions (all of which were fantastic, I might add) and soon felt less and less antsy. As I was waiting in line to have Azar Nafisi sign Reading Lolita in Tehran (that’s right—she signed my book!), I heard some conversations that told me I could abandon my anxiety. In front of me, a lass and lad were arguing about which Poe work they thought deserved more merit: “The Black Cat” or “Usher.” Behind me, two young men were discussing how to diagram the sentence “Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo.” I was in English heaven.

After that first night in line, I stepped into my element. I opened up to other students and advisors and made several connections within the organization. I also decided to go ahead and run for Student Representative, a position I had been eyeing on the Sigma website ever since I had found out my papers had been accepted. When I was selected to be the High Plains SR for the upcoming year, I was utterly thrilled. I realized that, in such a short time, Sigma had already provided several meaningful opportunities, and I was ready to start giving back.

Over the past year, I have been privileged to work with an outstanding group of leaders who have worked hard to improve Sigma Tau Delta—and the Pittsburgh convention—for its members. I have also, thanks to my network of contacts I met at convention, been able to help my local chapter at FHSU be more active and aware of all Sigma has to offer—the scholarships, the internships, the project grants, and so much more.

So if you’re the shy new middle school kid of Sigma Tau Delta, I challenge you to attend convention. Even if you’re not presenting papers or applying to be a SR, you can start making connections within an organization whose main purpose is to serve you—a fellow English lover. I’m not saying you have to step up as a Student Representative your first convention, but I am saying that convention can provide invaluable opportunities for you. You will be surrounded by literally hundreds of fellow English nerds—yes, the ones who laugh at “that’s what she read.” And you will have the opportunity to meet top-notch intellectuals and to expand your repertoire as a writer, a leader, and an English lover.

Blog the Convention!

2011-02-25T07:04:00.000-08:00

Announcing the "Blog the Convention" contest

Ok, it's really the Blog/Twitter/Facebook the Convention Contest, but that doesn't have the same ring to it!

The Challenge

Use Facebook, Twitter, our blog, or yours, to share your convention experience with the world, and in the process try to win some nifty prizes. Tell us your thoughts, post your pictures, and interact with other Sigma Tau Deltans through the social media tool of your choice to help make this convention the best one yet!

Two Ways to Win

1- Post the most.  That's it. Nothing complicated or fancy, just be the person or team with the most qualifying posts, tweets, comments, and links, and you win. Simple as that.

 2- Post the best.  Be the person or team that the Student Leadership Committee feels made the best contributions to the contest, and you win. The winner will: make many different kinds of posts, leave thoughtful comments on other people's posts, posts pictures, links, maybe even video, and report on many different aspects of the convention experience. This prize is subject to the judgment of the Student Leadership Committee; multiple prizes may be awarded.

 Who? 
Anyone! While we expect that most of the people participating will be going to the convention, those who are stuck at home can still play along by posting questions for people, responding to other people's posts, and sharing relevant links.

Members of the Student Leadership Committee and the Convention Chair are not eligible to win. However, we will still be posting right along with you. Our posts may include things like insider tips or mini contests, so keep your eyes open!

When?
The contest starts Monday, March 21, at 8 a.m. EST, and ends Monday, March 28, at 8 p.m. EST. This doesn't mean you can't start posting early. In fact, we hope you do start early so we can spread the word and get everyone excited about convention. But only posts made during the contest window will be considered for prizes.

 Why? 
Well, aside from the fun and excitement of interacting with other convention goers and never missing out on an impromptu pizza party, we are offering fabulous prizes!

 How? 
• Twitter: Use the hash tag #DeltaCon to enter any tweet into the contest. If you reply to something someone else said, use @Nickname at the beginning of the tweet, and make sure the hash tag gets in there too.

• Facebook: Join the Sigma Tau Delta fan page and post on our wall, using the hash tag #DeltaCon. Remember, you have to put it on our fan page. If you post it on your wall we might not see it and it may not get counted.

• Your Own blog, website, or Facebook page: Make your posts there. Then share the link with us on our Facebook page or Twitter (remember to use those hash tags).

• Email: Don't like any of that bloggy, Twittery, Tacebooky stuff, but still want to participate? No problem! email your submissions directly to the Student Leadership Committee at sigmatd.sa1@gmail.com and we will post them for you. It may take a little while for us to get around to posting it, but as long as your email is received during the contest window it will be counted.

• Can't decide which to use? You don't have to! You can use any combination of submission methods that you want. Just make sure you send us an email to sigmatd.sa1@gmail.com to let us know that Jane Delta on Facebook and JaneDelta1986 on Twitter are the same person so you get credit for all of your posts.

• Team up! Don't think you can do it on your own? Combine your efforts with your friends for a better chance to win. You can all post using one account, or just send us an email at sigmatd.sa1@gmail.com letting us know which accounts and screen names are part of your team. Unfortunately this does mean you will have to share the prize, but it's always nice to share.

• One more thing! Please do not use the initialism "STD" to refer to our illustrious organization. If "Sigma Tau Delta" takes up too many of your 140 characters, we would prefer you use "SigmaTD".

What?
Post anything related to the convention. Tell us how excited you are to be going. Post a picture of your chapter looking sleepy at the airport. Share instructions on your killer packing technique that let you fit everything you need into one carryon. Once here, let people know what events you are attending, and when they are over let people know what you thought. Share a video of your chapter's 2nd place Dry T-shirt skit and let the world know you were robbed! Start a poll for the best place to eat lunch. Announce that anyone who comes by your t-shirt table with the code word gets 20% off. Re-tell the funny joke you overheard in the hall. Invite people to join you for dinner at Primanti Bros. Ask if anyone knows the name of the guy who went last at open mic night. As you are packing up and heading home, reflect on your experiences and give us your suggestions for how things could be better. You can even post links to content on other sites, so long as it has something to do with convention (video of one of our featured speakers at another event is good, video of you at your cousin's bachelor party a year ago is not). Remember, the comments you leave on other people's posts count too, so make sure you read what other people have to say and give them feedback.

Winners will be announced after the contest ends (it may take us a few days to tabulate the scores, so please be patient). Winners will be contacted through whatever medium you used to participate, so make sure to check your Facebook/Twitter/Blog/email/whatever to find out if you won. Prizes will be mailed to the winner in early April.

The Fine Print:

You knew is was coming sooner or later! Don't worry, we're not trying to trick you; this is basically the part where we say that cheaters never prosper. 

Posts that won't count toward prize eligibility: 
-Unrelated posts. Your post must have something to do with convention to be counted.
 -Duplicates. If you post the exact same link 4 times in one day we will note your enthusiasm, but you will only get credit for it the first time only. 
-Retweets/Reposts. If someone shares a great link and you want to repost it so your non-Sigma Tau Delta friends can see it, swell! But don't expect to get credit for something someone else wrote.
 -Likes. While we encourage you to hit the"Like" button on Facebook or the "Funny" button on the blog if you think someone made a good post, only actual comments will count as contest activity. 

This contest is meant to be fun for everyone and we expect participants to reflect Sigma Tau Delta's high standards for decorum. The following types of posts will be immediately removed/reported, and could get you disqualified from the contest. We will try to give you a warning first, but truly egregious violations will result in immediate disqualification. Posts that will get you in trouble: 
-Any posts containing inappropriate language, inappropriate material, insults, or other behavior unbecoming of a Sigma Tau Delta member. This will include, but not be limited to profanity, nudity, name calling, hate speech, or harassment. 
-Any posts that describe inappropriate behavior, even if the post doesn't include graphic descriptions or pictures. We are not here to play nanny, we expect you to use your judgement on this. If you take a picture of your chapter at dinner, the adults don't need to hide their wine glasses. But if you get drunk and decide to do something stupid, please don't share it with the rest of us. If you wouldn't want the Dean of your college hearing about it, we don't want to hear about it either.
 -Any posts that depict or describe activity or behavior that is illegal or against hotel rules. Not only will this sort of post be deleted, we will be obligated to report it to your chapter sponsor and possibly the police or hotel management.  
-Unauthorized pictures or video. Everyone who attends convention has consented to be photographed or recorded while at the event, and it is usually not a problem to snap a picture or record a speech. However, our 4 featured speakers are all under contract, and they usually do not give us permission to take video of them. Any unauthorized video of our featured speakers will be immediately removed from any sites that we control and may result in further disciplinary action. Also, because having flashes going off in the face is disconcerting to people presenting their papers, please be polite and ask before taking photos during a session. If the subject of a picture or video asks us to take it down we will, and you won't get credit for it, so when in doubt, ask. 
-Spam. The rules of the contest are not strict, and your posts don't have to be particularly long or deep to count, but obviously trying to game the system by posting dozens of slight variations on the same message or commenting on every post with "Yeah!" or "You're so right!" will result in disciplinary action. We will try to warn you if we see this kind of behavior and give you a chance to change and/or appeal, but any activity that appears to be from a script, bot, hacker, or other malicious person or tool will be banned automatically. If the contest gets taken over by hackers we will end it and nobody will win, so please don't ruin it for everybody! If you do notice suspicious activity, please report it right away.
 -Plagiarism or cheating. If we catch you trying to pass off someone else's material as your own, claiming ownership of an account that isn't yours, or in any way trying to cheat, you will be immediately disqualified from the contest and could face further disciplinary action.