Our Alpha Nu Gamma Chapter of Sigma Tau Delta, at the University of Southern Mississippi was especially excited by this year’s Common Reader selection, Salvage the Bones, by Jesmyn Ward. Aside from Ward’s book being a nationally recognized classic, it is “home grown” for us in South Mississippi. Our personal connection to both the author and the story made it a compelling and personal reading experience, which engaged our undergraduate and graduate chapter members, as well as creative writing students across the English program.
The chapter met on the first Friday of each month from September through December for group discussions lead by the Chapter’s Faculty Advisor, Dr. Luis Iglesias. Opening the discussion to the English program’s students at large, we read several “days” at a time as a group and relived the experience along with Esch and her family through personal recollections. Given our members’ on-the-ground experience with Hurricane Katrina—there wasn’t one member whose family was not impacted by it—members shared both personal and family stories and our discussions were heartfelt and critically engaged.
We timed our Book Club meetings to culminate with meeting Jesmyn Ward on USM’s Gulf Park Campus. It was an impactful moment to see Ward, share our thoughts about the book, and express our appreciation of her writing and storytelling.
On average, the discussion group attracted ten members per book club meeting, including both undergraduate and graduate members. Our chapter has been running a book club for several years and we regularly make the Common Reader selection a cornerstone of the club’s reading choices. In the spring, we will continue the book club and use the Regents’ Common Reader Award money to sponsor a trip to attend a USM Theatre production, thereby further enhancing our members’ experience and exposure to literature and culture.
Shelby Clark, Chapter President
Emma Nichols, Chapter Vice President
Evan Barnes, Chapter Secretary
Brinley Harden, Chapter PR Coordinator
Regents’ Common Reader Award Recipient, 2025-2026
Alpha Nu Gamma Chapter
University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS
Book Club Kits
Each year, English Honor Societies creates Book Club Kits to help chapters strengthen their bonds and build a sense of community. By reading the same book and engaging with carefully designed activities, chapters can connect in meaningful ways while deepening their ties to the international Society. These kits highlight works by convention and webinar speakers, reframe commonly taught texts through fresh perspectives, and provide thoughtful guides to frequently banned books.
What’s Inside Each Book Club Kit
- Further Reading and Resources: Each kit includes a list of recommended texts and community resources to enrich understanding and inspire further exploration of key themes.
- Discussion Questions: Questions invite participants to actively engage with the text and one another, encouraging lively and meaningful conversations.
- Opportunities for Connection: Prompts guide readers to draw connections between the featured work, other texts in the Book Club Kit collection, and wider literature.
- Literature as Praxis: This section bridges literary study and lived experience, helping readers connect the text to pressing campus- and community-level social justice issues.
Salvage the Bones, by Jesmyn Ward
Jesmyn Ward, born April 1, 1977, in Oakland, CA, is an acclaimed 21st-century writer whose work explores human-animal relationships, environmental crisis, capitalism, Black life in the American South, and the legacies of segregation and slavery. She is the first Black American and woman to win the National Book Award twice (2011, 2017).
Her notable works include Salvage the Bones; Let Us Descend; Sing, Unburied, Sing; The Fire This Time; Mother Swamp; and Where the Line Bleeds.
Salvage the Bones is the 2026 Common Reader. Consider applying for a Regents’ Common Reader Award to fund chapter events featuring Salvage the Bones and plan to attend Ward’s Keynote at the 2026 Convention. See also last year’s Book Club Kit on Ward’s Sing, Unburied, Sing.
Book Club Kit: Salvage the Bones
Regents’ Common Reader Awards
The Regents’ Common Reader Awards provide an opportunity for individual chapters to organize and host a local event or activity based on the common reader. Chapter members do not need to attend the convention to apply. Contact your Regent and you may receive $100 for your event or activity.
Application Guidelines
Organize and host a local event or activity based on this text and apply for award money after your event. Submit to your Regent via email the Regents Fund Request form as well as the following materials in a single PDF:
- A cover letter, signed by the Chapter Advisor (or sent from the Advisor’s email address), confirming that the activity or event took place
- A narrative, not to exceed 500 words, describing the activity or event
- A list of all participating persons or groups
- Pertinent supplemental materials (event program, flyers, website, social media posts, campus news story, etc.)
The Regents’ Common Reader Award is open to all chapters of Sigma Tau Delta. It is completely separate to convention submissions. The Regents hope this award will be a way for chapters in each region to share a convention-related experience even if they are not able to attend the convention. We hope it will encourage relative, text-based activities and events. And, lastly, we hope it will give space to reflect on the power of language both in our own lives and in the lives of others.
Sigma Tau Delta
Sigma Tau Delta, International English Honor Society, was founded in 1924 at Dakota Wesleyan University. The Society strives to
- Confer distinction for high achievement in English language and literature in undergraduate, graduate, and professional studies;
- Provide, through its local chapters, cultural stimulation on college campuses and promote interest in literature and the English language in surrounding communities;
- Foster all aspects of the discipline of English, including literature, language, and writing;
- Promote exemplary character and good fellowship among its members;
- Exhibit high standards of academic excellence; and
- Serve society by fostering literacy.
With over 900 active chapters located in the United States and abroad, there are more than 1,000 Faculty Advisors, and approximately 9,000 members inducted annually.
Sigma Tau Delta also recognizes the accomplishments of professional writers who have contributed to the fields of language and literature.
More from Footnotes: February 24, 2026
2026 Convention Presentation Schedule Now Available
2026 Convention Update
Spring Awards Cycle
Journal Submissions
