04/02/2009
SUNY Cortland's chapter of Phi Beta Delta (PBD), the international honor society dedicated to recognizing scholarly achievement in international education, recently was named the outstanding chapter in the northeast region.
The three-year-old chapter will be presented with a plaque during an award ceremony during the PBD's national conference from April 2-3 in Miami, Fla.
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| Members of Phi Beta Delta show honorary plaque to SUNY Cortland President Erik J. Bitterbaum, seated left. They are: seated next to Bitterbaum, Henry Steck; and standing from left, Douglas Langhans, Lara Atkins, Deborah Dintino and Sharon Steadman. |
"SUNY Cortland is not just ‘talking the talk' but also ‘walking the walk,'" Rachouh said. "This is what Phi Beta Delta strives to encourage with our interdisciplinary and intergenerational and multi-identity focus - on faculty, staff and students."
PBD Cortland chapter officers were pleasantly surprised by the recognition. The College took no action to be considered for the award.
"This is an important way to recognize excellence in academics and service to the advancement of SUNY Cortland's international mission and to contribute to our efforts to internationalize the campus," said SUNY Distinguished Service Professor Henry J. Steck, president of the Cortland chapter of PBD. The professor of political science also coordinates the College's Project on Eastern and Central Europe.
"As coordinator of the International Studies major at SUNY Cortland, I am thrilled that the chapter has been selected for this honor," said chapter vice president Sharon Steadman, an associate professor of sociology/anthropology. "Many international studies majors have been inducted into PBD, deservedly so, and it is wonderful that their hard work, and that of the Cortland PBD chapter, has been nationally recognized."
Founded in 1986 at California State University, Long Beach, PBD is an academic and professional society that is both interdisciplinary and international. Its goals are to recognize the scholarly achievement of international students and scholars who have studied abroad and faculty and staff who are involved in international activities; to help develop academic-based international programming; and to provide a campus and international network of faculty, staff and students involved in international endeavors.
The SUNY Cortland chapter, one of 168 nationwide, was chartered and held its first induction ceremony in Spring 2006. Its membership of both American and international students and faculty and staff reflects the inclusionary aspect so cherished by the national organization. In addition to having 123 students and 27 faculty members, the chapter has nine administrators, nine staff members and five honorary members, including James M. Clark, emeritus SUNY Cortland president; John Ryder, former SUNY Cortland dean of arts and sciences and current SUNY director of international programs; John Ogden, director emeritus of international programs; Dorothea Kreig Fowler, alumna and current College Council chair; and the late Charles Gibson, a friend of the College.
In addition to Steck and Steadman, Lara Atkins, assistant director of the College's James M. Clark Center for International Education, is the chapter's treasurer. Deborah Dintino, secretary of political science, is membership chair.
"We recognize all members of the College community and beyond - students, faculty, staff, professional staff, administrators and distinguished others," Steck said. "In so doing we demonstrate our commitment to overall inclusiveness and in the belief that all have a part to play in making Cortland at home in the world and bringing the world closer to home in Cortland. It is a sign of our academic strength and maturity to have been admitted as a Phi Beta Delta chapter."
The national PBD was impressed with the growth at Cortland of the international studies program as a major, Rachouh said. Representatives from the national organization were also pleased to learn the Cortland chapter has already created an academic award, the Phi Beta Delta International Honor Society Student Excellence Award. The inaugural recipients, senior psychology major Tanisha Billy of Spring Valley, N.Y., and senior international studies major Sarah Hahn Voorhees of Buffalo, N.Y., will be recognized during Honors Convocation on Saturday, April 18, at the College.
"Phi Beta Delta highly values scholarships for students, and so that was something that really stood out for me" about SUNY Cortland's chapter, Rachouh said. "I am particularly impressed with your chapter's sponsorship of a scholarship student at your Honors Convocation, that really lets the whole campus know the importance of Phi Beta Delta and its value of internationally focused scholarship."
Cortland's PBD members were involved for almost two years in planning with the American Council on Education (ACE)-sponsored Internationalization Laboratory.
"It's quite an honor for your campus to be participating, but equally important is the role of PBD members in that endeavor," Rachoud said. "I know the work is extremely time consuming and very important."
With the extra energy from PBD membership, next fall the College will expand its annual event-filled International Education Week series to fill a month.
Cortland PBD will induct new members on Thursday, Nov. 12. For more information about the chapter, contact Steck at (607) 753-4807 or Sharon Steadman at (607) 753-2308. For more information about the national organization, visit the Web site at www.phibetadelta.org.