Sigma Delta Pi: Rediscovering a Century. 1919–2019 by Mark P. Del Mastro

Abstract

Reviewed by: Sigma Delta Pi: Rediscovering a Century. 1919–2019 by Mark P. Del Mastro Mary-Anne Vetterling Del Mastro, Mark P. Sigma Delta Pi: Rediscovering a Century. 1919–2019. Juan de la Cuesta, 2020. Pp. 239. ISBN 978-1-58871-348-3. This book is a gem! Full-sized, with over 80 photos (many in color), it comes meticulously researched and is beautifully organized. Mark Del Mastro, Associate Provost and Professor of Hispanic Studies at the College of Charleston and also the Executive Director of Sigma Delta Pi, has accessed numerous documents from the Society’s files and has organized the information into a fascinating narrative that contains a vast amount of information. Not only is it a history of Sigma Delta Pi (the National Collegiate Hispanic Honor Society) but it also contains a significant amount of information about AATSP members and leaders from the past hundred years. The volume is a monument to the hard work of many who have collaborated selflessly over the years. Del Mastro’s descriptions of the various leaders of the Society are captivating in their own right and are filled with details bringing these extraordinary human beings to life. Through their accomplishments, their illnesses (including heart attacks, pancreatic cancer, premature senility, tuberculosis), he provides the reader with a sense of the hard work and persistence that have made it possible for this Society to flourish. Del Mastro includes the affiliations of each leader, following their careers from institution to institution. The first two of the 24 chapters contain a detailed description of the founding of the Society by Ruth Barnes in 1919, at the time an undergraduate at the University of California at Berkeley. Del Mastro went to great lengths to find out about Ruth, and even interviewed her granddaughter in 2018 to retrieve a fascinating but sad story about Sigma Delta Pi’s founder. The next chapter provides us with a history of the Society’s presidents. It is astounding to read how the Society grew over the years via the enormous labors and talents of its leaders. The many facets of the Society—from the organization of its local chapters, the frequent letter-writing (now emails), the task of reviving inactive chapters, the work of organizing a myriad of meetings, the managing of its finances, on through the various awards for graduates and undergraduates—can all be found in these pages and will well serve future leaders and members with the wisdom contained herein. Del Mastro’s well-informed chapter on the position of Executive Secretary-Treasurer is impressive in its listing of the many duties and responsibilities of that office. We find out about honor cords, stoles, pins, insignia, awards, official agreements with various other organizations, handbooks, upgrading to the web, creation of email distribution lists, online voting, and much more. [End Page 422] The chapter on Honorary Presidents includes biographies of a number of AATSP officers, details from the lives of several wealthy Hispanists, and brief accounts of other leaders who have enhanced Sigma Delta Pi with their support and wisdom. We also learn about the history of the Vice Presidency, an office that eventually evolved into five regional Vice Presidencies from across the United States. Another chapter focuses on the ongoing changes to the association’s By-Laws/Constitution with detailed explanations on why each change was necessary. We also find out about the creation of the logo, the crest and the certificates, ranging from when they were fashioned by hand through their current reproduction by computer. The motto, slogan and the special induction ritual have also been under scrutiny and revision over the years. Del Mastro reports the details elegantly with even the amusing but impractical suggestion by one member that the ritual follow the adventures of Don Quijote (120). The chapter on the Triennial Meetings is the second lengthiest in the book (the longest deals with the national presidents). Initially these meetings were held in conjunction with the MLA and AATSP conventions, first when they met jointly, then with just the MLA when the two larger organizations separated, and finally exclusively with the AATSP, with whom Sigma Delta Pi has become increasingly affiliated. The detailed accounts...