Student Clubs

Students with majors, minors, and concentrations in the English Department at Roanoke College have several excellent opportunities to broaden their creative horizons.

Sigma Tau Delta

This national honor society recognizes superior achievement in English, language and literature. It also recognizes the accomplishments of professional writers who have contributed to language and literature. Sigma Tau Delta has over 600 active chapters and inducts roughly 7,000 members annually. Its members have the opportunity to be recognized for their exceptional achievements, enrich their knowledge through education and advance their professions. Sigma Tau Delta offers several $2,000-$2,500 scholarships for juniors, seniors and graduate student members. There are many internship opportunities that include Regnery Publishing, Inc., Washington, D.C., a nonfiction publisher, and Gannett Company, Inc., publisher of USA Today and more than 80 other daily newspapers. Teaching awards of $1,000 are distributed to a number of beginning English teachers on the elementary, middle and secondary levels. Members are provided the opportunity to have creative and critical works published in Sigma Tau Delta's international journal, The Rectangle. To become a member you must: have achieved at least sophomore standing; have completed nine hours of English courses; have a 3.0 GPA overall and be in the top 35% of your class; and have 3.2 GPA in English courses.

Creative Writing at Roanoke College

Students interested in exploring creative writing at the college should know that the department offers writing courses in various genres each year. Overseeing the creative writing elements of Roanoke College's English Department is the Creative Writing Board, which is made up of students and professors. The board supports student projects on campus, subscribes to important literary and creative journals and books, and sponsors a pair of creative writing contests each spring. This group is also active in bringing both regional and national writers to campus to mingle with students and give readings. Recent participants include poets Cleopatra Mathis, Alberto Rios, Eric Treathaway, Yusef Komunyakaa, Jeff Daniel Marion, Dave Smith and Fred Chappell; recent fiction and non-fiction writers include Brent Staples, Rita Cerisi, Sydney Blair, Linda Hogan and Tim O'Brien. Members of the Creative Writing Board are always looking for suggestions of folks that students might enjoy meeting and hearing, so let us know if you have someone special in mind. This reading series is one of the most well-attended functions on the Roanoke College campus.