Skylar Roberts has been named as the New President of Ashland's chapter of Sigma Tau Delta, the international English honorary society. Skylar is replacing outgoing officers Rachel Barkley and Sara Ludwig, who are May 2020 graduates. Thank you Rachel and Sara for your service to Sigma Tau Delta!
We asked Skylar some questions about Sigma Tau Delta and why she decided to get more involved with our chapter of the organization in a leadership role.
1. What interests you about being a member and officer of Sigma Tau Delta?
When I became a member of Sigma Tau Delta last year, I had a really good time. I thought that my peers that were also involved in the group were very welcoming and I got the chance to know more about them, which was very exciting. I also thought that the events that the previous co-presidents had planned were quite engaging. As that semester went on, I always felt like there was something that I could bring to the table. Now, coming into an officer role next semester, I think it will be fun and interesting to change the group up a little bit. I am excited to see how this honorary will help myself and others grow in our majors and grow as individuals.
2. What are you hoping to accomplish in your leadership role?
In this leadership role, I am looking to accomplish things in two categories. First, I am looking forward to accomplishing things within the role. I hope to create an environment where people outside of just the engaged English majors feel comfortable showing up. I hope to incorporate some of my education major into this role. I want to be able to help the Ashland community with my peers. not just interact with them. I would like to keep some of the classic events from last year, while also adding new events that will hopefully be intriguing to the whole student body. Secondly, I hope to accomplish some of my own personal goals while serving in this leadership role. I hope to refine my networking skills, making more connects by communicating and planning things with different people on campus and in the community. I also hope that this leadership role helps me feel more confident in my own skills within my major, that it will help prove that the work that I have been putting into my education is paying off. I would also hope that with that the events that I hope to plan and with the environment that I plan to create within the group, I can help my peers gain confidence in themselves and in the work that they produce.
3. What is your major and what are some career goals?
I am a double major in English and Integrated Language Arts. I also am getting a minor in Creative Writing. My career goal is to first teach high school English in an inner city school, possibly down south. I would love to teach inner city because I feel like there are so many students who get lost in the system and feel as though there is no one who truly is rooting for them and wants them to succeed. I want to be that teacher who can make them feel like someone cares, encourage them to stay on the right path. While I am teaching high school, I would really enjoy teaching a couple of elective courses or extracurricular programs that have to do with tutoring English to their peers or finding the fun in creative writing. Eventually, the goal is to go back to school to get my masters and then my doctorate and teach college level. The relationships that I have developed with my own professors have made me want to teach at this level. I want to be for students what my professors are to me, people I know that care about my goals and aspirations.
4. Why do you think others should apply to Sigma Tau Delta?
I think that other students should apply to Sigma Tau Delta because it is first a great way to connect with your peers outside of the classroom. It allows us to grow in our interests with one another and learn more about the field that we are studying while we are doing it. Also, I believe that Sigma Tau Delta is a group where all ideas are accepted. It will be a place where English students are able to provide feedback and suggest events in an open and encouraging environment. Lastly, students who choose to join Sigma Tau Delta are bound to make strong connections with professors on campus and with people in the community, allowing them to be able to get advice or help when needed from someone who has gone down the same path that they are experiencing.
For more information about Sigma Tau Delta, check out their website at www.english.org.
To become a member or Ashland's chapter, contact hdonatin@ashland.edu for an application
