2008-2009 Scholarship Recipients
E. Nelson James Junior Scholarship ($3,000)
Jennifer Dorsey
Ohio University (E)
Alpha Theta Phi chapter
Jennifer Dorsey is in her third year at Ohio University where she is earning a degree in English as well as a minor in Sociology. She plans on graduating in the fall of 2009 and will take a year off before pursuing a graduate degree.
Runners-up ($1,500 each)
Rachel Zecca
Salem College (S)
Alpha Eta Kappa chapter
Rachele Zecca is a junior at Salem College in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, pursuing a B.A. in English with minors in Creative Writing and Women's Studies. Rachele had the pleasure of being the treasurer for Salem's chapter of Sigma Tau Delta for the 2008-2009 academic year and looks forward to being an active member in the upcoming school year.
Laura Fuller
Luther College (MW)
Alpha Beta Xi chapter
Laura Fuller is originally from Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She is currently pursuing a B.A. in English with minors in Music and Secondary Education at Luther College in Decorah, IA. After graduating next spring, she plans to teach English at the high school level.
Elva Bell McLin Senior Scholarship ($3,000 each)
Jenna Johnson
Valparaiso University (MW)
Kappa Phi chapter
Jenna Johnson will graduate from Valparaiso University, Valparaiso, Indiana in May 2009 with a B.A. in English, Theatre, and Chinese and Japanese Studies. The president of the Kappa Phi chapter of Sigma Tau Delta, Jenna is a Shakespeare enthusiast and seeks to pursue a career in dramaturgical research.
Katie Edwards
Fort Hays State University (HP)
Rho Psi chapter
Catherine "Katie" Edwards received her B.A. in English and a B.A. in Philosophy from Fort Hays State University in Hays, Kansas in May of 2009. She will be pursuing a Master's of Public Administration degree with an emphasis in Nonprofit Management at Indiana University Purdue University-Indianapolis in the fall, where she hopes to use her writing skills to clearly relate the missions of non profits to the public at large. Her time as the president of the Rho Psi chapter has given her a taste for management, and she believes that her work with Sigma Tau Delta has helped to prepare her for her future career.
Runner-Up ($1,500)
Rebecca Straple
Illinois State University (MS)
Lambda Delta chapter
Rebecca Straple is a Publishing and Dance Performance double major at Illinois State University, and she will graduate with two B.A. degrees this December. She has acted as Undergraduate Librarian for her chapter, and her essay entitled "Children of the Waste Land: T.S. Eliot's The Wasteland, Arthurian Romance, and Punk Music" was published in her chapter's academic journal, Polyglossia. A company member of Illinois State University's pre-professional dance company, Illinois State Dance Theatre, Rebecca will continue dancing while studying for a graduate degree, which she hopes to complete in Medieval Literature at Oxford University in England.
Edwin L. Stockton, Jr., Graduate Scholarship ($3,000 each)
Ania Saj
Westfield State College (E)
Alpha Eta Sigma chapter
Ania Saj is currently in an M.A. program at Westfield State College in Massachusetts, where she recently earned her B.A. with a concentration in Middle and Secondary Education. She has been a member of Sigma Tau Delta since 2006 and plans to teach English Language Arts at either the middle or high school level upon completion of her master's degree.
Andrea Murphy
Old Dominion University (S)
Nu Upsilon chapter
After six years in the US Navy turning wrenches, Andrea escaped to the world of academia. She is currently working on a Ph.D. in English with a concentration in New Media and Professional Writing at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, where she also teaches composition.
Sigma Tau Delta Scholarship ($4,000)
Stephanie Schiefelbein
University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire (MW)
Theta Zeta chapter
Stephanie Schiefelbein is a senior at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire pursuing a double major in English-Literature and Music-Liberal Arts, as well as a minor in Organizational Communications. She is very involved in Sigma Tau Delta as president of her local Theta Zeta chapter and as the 2008-2010 Student Advisor on the National Sigma Tau Delta Board of Directors. After she graduates in May 2010, Stephanie is considering graduate school or a career in publishing.
Henry Regnery Endowed Scholarship ($2,000)
Hannah Scialdone-Kimberley
Old Dominion University (S)
Nu Upsilon chapter
Hannah Scialdone-Kimberley is a Ph.D. candidate in English at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia; she specializes in rhetoric and textual studies. Her research interests include the rhetorical approaches of women explorers, the rhetoric of sustainability, and the gendered rhetoric of scientific and professional writing. She has served as the president of the Nu Upsilon chapter of Sigma Tau Delta since 2007.
Runner-up ($500)
Elif Guler
Old Dominion University (S)
Nu Upsilon chapter
Elif has a B.A. in International Relations from Koc University in Turkey and an M.A. in English with a concentration in Professional Writing from Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, where she is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in English, Rhetoric and Textual Studies. She was the vice president of the Nu Upsilon chapter of Sigma Tau Delta from Fall 2007-Spring 2009. After getting her Ph.D., she would like to teach rhetoric and intercultural communication at the college level.
Sigma Tau Delta Study Abroad Scholarship ($3,000 each)
First Round
Seth Clark
Northwest Nazarene University (FW)
Alpha Omicron Omicron chapter
Seth Clark is currently a senior undergraduate student working toward a degree in English at Northwest Nazarene University in Nampa, Idaho.
Second Round
Sarah Suzanne Lysaker
Northwestern College (MW)
Alpha Beta Omega chapter
Sarah Suzanne Lysaker is a senior at Northwestern College in St. Paul, Minnesota, currently pursuing her B.S. in English: Literature and Writing. She is from Pelican Rapids, Minnesota, and she intends to pursue an M.F.A. in Creative Writing after achieving her undergraduate degree. Next fall, she looks forward to studying abroad in England at Oxford University, where she has been accepted into the Scholars' Semester in Oxford honors program.
Regent Scholarships ($1,000 each)
Eastern
Florencia Lauria
Marist College (E)
Alpha Mu Kappa chapter
Florencia Lauria is a junior at Marist College in Poughkeepsie, New York. She is pursuing an English major with concentrations in both Writing and Literature and a Global Studies minor. Aside from her involvement in Sigma Tau Delta, Florencia is also president of the Literary Arts Society at Marist College.
Far Western
Elina Tilman
University of San Francisco (FW)
Zeta Pi chapter
Elina Tilman immigrated to America from Uzbekistan in 1996. While she initially struggled with English, she later developed an immense passion for English literature. She currently attends the University of San Francisco, with a major in English Literature and a minor in Criminal Studies, expecting her B.A. in May of 2010.
High Plains
Katrina Powell
Nebraska Wesleyan University (HP)
Kappa Xi chapter
Katrina Powell is currently pursuing a B.A. in English with a minor in Theatre Arts at Nebraska Wesleyan University. Katrina has spent the past semester studying abroad in Aalborg, Denmark, and will spend the upcoming semester completing an internship in Washington, D.C. In the future, Katrina aspires to teach English abroad for a year before continuing her education with a master's degree in Mass Communication.
Southern
Kelsey Anne Miller
Elon University (S)
Xi Omicron chapter
Kelsey Miller is an English major with a concentration in Teaching Licensure at Elon University in North Carolina. Upon graduation in May 2010, she plans to settle in North Carolina and teach English to high school students.
P. C. Somerville Teaching Awards ($2,000 each)
Anika Rohla
Northwestern Oklahoma State University (SW)
Alpha Nu Psi chapter
Anika Rohla, a native of Germany, received a B.A. in English Education from Northwestern Oklahoma State University in Alva, Oklahoma. Throughout her college career, she was a member and officer of Sigma Tau Delta's Lambda Iota Tau chapter and the Student Oklahoma Education Association. She hopes to teach English and plans to pursue an M.A. in English at Fort Hays State University in Kansas.