Tag Archives: Alpha Lambda Delta

Honor societies on the Hill

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The McDaniel College class of 2013 graduated on Saturday. Though I wasn’t on the Hill to see the ceremony, I did see plenty of pictures of my friends donning their caps and gowns and lots of cords. Seeing all those cords reminded me of how there are plenty of honor societies McDaniel students can join during their time on the Hill. Here’s an overview of them.

Alpha Lambda Delta is a national honor society for students who have achieved a 3.7 or better during their freshman year. Students on the Hill are inducted as sophomores every fall. Once inducted, students are required to complete community service and attend one social event per semester, but it’s not that big of a commitment. I’m a member of Alpha Lambda Delta, and being inducted into this honor society gave me the chance to nominate my academic adviser to be an honorary inductee. (She won the nomination and my nomination submission was read during her induction, which was very exciting for me!)

Departmental honor societies are another way to join honor societies on the Hill. Lots of departments have them, and each department has its own induction and membership requirements. As an English major, I’m looking forward to being inducted into Lambda Iota Tau (LIT), the literature honor society, provided I still meet the requirements next spring. 

Alpha Psi Omega is the theater department’s honor society, but it’s unique in that it’s kind of like a fraternity or sorority; inductees are each assigned a “big” and members proudly wear their letters on t-shirts like other Greek organizations on campus. In addition to various GPA requirements, inductees are required to have been involved with at least three McDaniel productions in two different areas of activity.

Phi Beta Kappa is a national honor society for the liberal arts. It has a whole slew of requirements which you can find here, but its fame and prestige makes it an honor society worth working toward.

Trumpeters is a small McDaniel-only honor society that recognizes leadership. Only a few students are selected for it each year, but being in it is a wonderful honor. Students can apply for Trumpeters the spring of their junior year.

Honor societies aren’t the talk of the Hill, but they’re something worth working toward. They show employers that you are intelligent, hard working, and that you have a commitment to community service. To find out more about all the honor societies at McDaniel, go here!

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S’mores!

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Yes, the first day of classes after spring break was a snow day! For this reason, I got a lot of curious looks from strangers at the grocery store as I was stocking up on graham crackers, marshmallows, and chocolate bars. The lady waiting behind me in line decided to scream, “S’MORES?!” She must have been thinking that I was crazy for purchasing all the ingredients for the ultimate summer cookout on a snowy day. Little did she know that McDaniel has an indoor fireplace that can be used for s’mores anytime of the year!

The purpose of the event: Alpha Lambda Delta First Year Honor Society social! ALD is an honor society that inducts sophomores each year who have performed exceedingly well during their freshman year at McDaniel. It is a great honor that is respected as a privilege and not a right. ALD members are required to attend one social event and one service event each semester. The s’mores social event tonight had been planned for a while, but the cold weather this week really made it a successful event – a great way to warm up by the fireplace, eat tasty snacks, and socialize with friends.

ALD has a variety of other events throughout the year which all include free food and drinks – the best perk of being in the club. Pizza and a movie is always a popular event. The most recent movie night featured Disney’s Tangled (there were a lot of laughs). I think the most notorious event is handing out candy to students who are studying in the library during finals week to encourage them to keep up the good work! The newest tradition takes place at the end of the spring semester for the seniors and involves passing down the “torch.” The three must have party snacks at this event – sparkling cider, cheese and crackers, and popsicles.

So if you want to take advantage of these opportunities when you get to McDaniel just work really hard during your freshman year and get those good grades. Then it is pizza, popsicles, and s’mores galore until you graduate!

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My Fun Family Weekend

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It’s been a pretty good week so far, but I can’t help but think back to how awesome this past weekend was for me. On Friday night, I went to the Family Weekend pep rally and watched six episodes of Monty Python’s Flying Circus with my friends.

My parents came on Saturday for Family Weekend, an annual weekend for family and friends to visit campus and have a good time.

The first half of my day with my parents was centered largely around the fact that I was getting inducted into Alpha Lambda Delta, a national honor society for first year students, in the afternoon. As a result, my time with them when they first got here was a little limited, but we were still able to squeeze in a trip to Panera Bread for lunch and a trip to Baugher’s, a local orchard store and restaurant in walking distance from campus, for some desserts to last me through the week.

The induction ceremony lasted around an hour, so we were able to go catch some of the football game. Because it rained though, we only stayed for half of the third quarter.

I had my parents take me to Target on 140 for some snacks and needed items before going to dinner at Full Moon Pub and Grill in nearby Reisterstown—my parents’ excellent choice of restaurant. Full Moon has some of the best cream of crab soup I’ve ever tasted. It’s not too sour, not too spicy, and full of chunky crab meat. I highly recommend it! (The chocolate cake was also pretty good!)

After dinner, we went to Westminster’s Town Mall to hang out some more and do some recreational shopping, before they brought me back to McDaniel to hang out some more before returning home.

After they left, I had one of the most memorable evenings with my friends and suitemates ever. One of my suite mate’s parents brought pizza for all of us, which was very kind and wonderful. Once they left, things got very fun. (Somehow, we managed to sing Christmas carols for at least 20 minutes.)

As you might imagine, on Sunday, I had to catch up on my homework since Saturday was devoted to Family Weekend. But it was still a good day, since I got a lot done and was in the company of my friends. And I have to tell you, the best part about the day after a visit from family is the leftovers!

I’d have to say that this was one of the best weekends I’ve had on campus for a long time. I was surrounded by great fun, great family, great friends, and great food! As I work through this week, thinking about this past weekend and the fun weekends to come is something that’s keeping me smiling!

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