The 23 awards will be as follows:

1) Four (4) scholarships for study in Spain at the Estudio Internacional Sampere (EIS) centers in Madrid or Salamanca. The EIS scholarships consist of free tuition for four, six or eight weeks of study (20 hours per week). EIS will provide these scholarships. EIS winners must pay the cost of room and meals while in Spain. Sigma Delta Pi will provide to the scholarship winners a stipend that may be used toward travel to Spain. These scholarships are more appropriate for applicants who are non-native speakers of Spanish.

2) One (1) scholarship for study in Ecuador at the Estudio Internacional Sampere (EIS) in Cuenca. The EIS scholarship consists of free tuition for four, six or eight weeks of study (20 hours per week). EIS will provide this scholarship. The EIS winner must pay the cost of room and meals while in Cuenca. Sigma Delta Pi will provide to the scholarship winners a stipend which may be used toward travel to Ecuador. This scholarship is more appropriate for applicants who are non-native speakers of Spanish.

3) Ten (10) scholarships for study at the Universidad Internacional / The Center for Bilingual Multicultural Studies of Cuernavaca, Mexico. The amount of the scholarship will cover the cost of tuition, room, and meals for a four-week course of study. The Center for Bilingual Multicultural Studies will provide four of these scholarships; for two of these Sigma Delta Pi will cover lodging and meals. Sigma Delta Pi will also provide to the scholarship winners a stipend which may be used toward travel to Mexico. These scholarships are appropriate for applicants of all levels of Spanish.

4) Becas Rosita del Corral: Eight (8) scholarships for study in Bolivia (Sucre, May 19-June 14, 2009), Ecuador (Quito, June 15-July 12), or Peru (Cusco, July 13-August 9) at the Academia Latinoamericana de Español. The Academia will provide free tuition, room and two meals per day for a four-week course of study. The Academia will provide four of these scholarships. Sigma Delta Pi will provide to the scholarship winners a stipend which may be used toward travel to Bolivia, Ecuador or Peru. These scholarships are appropriate for applicants of all levels of Spanish.

SIGMA DELTA PI is grateful to Mr. Juan Manuel Sampere of the Estudio Internacional Sampere; Mr. Javier Espinosa of the Universidad Internacional / The Center for Bilingual Multicultural Studies; and Dr. Diego del Corral of the Academia Latinoamericana de Español for their generosity in providing support for these awards.
 

This award is named in memory of Honorary President and President Emeritus, T. Earle Hamilton, who died October 2, 1996. Hamilton served as President of Sigma Delta Pi for a total of fifteen years (1960-68 and 1972-77). The highest ranked applicant who accepts one of the scholarships for study in Spanish America will receive this award. The scholarship will consist of a supplement to the basic award.

The Richard E. Chandler Scholarship

This award is named in honor of President Emeritus and Honorary President, Richard E. Chandler. He served as President of Sigma Delta Pi for a total of fifteen years (1977-92) during which time 141 new chapters were installed. The highest ranked applicant who accepts one of the scholarships for study in Spain will receive this award. The scholarship will consist of a supplement to the basic award.

To be eligible to receive one of the awards listed above, an undergraduate student must meet the following minimal requirements:

(1) must be a Spanish major or minor;

(2) must be of at least junior standing;

(3) must be an active (elected) member of Sigma Delta Pi;

(4) must have a superior academic record;

(5) must be enrolled on February 2, 2009 as a full-time undergradaute student;

(6) must have earned grades in at least 12 semester or 18 quarter hours of Spanish courses;

(7) must be nominated in writing by the chapter adviser;

(8) must submit five copies of a fully completed official application form together with all required documentation. (Contact local Faculty Adviser for details --such as application form-- and further assistance.)

CHOICE OF Spain or Spanish America.

Undergraduate Summer Scholarship applicants must indicate their preferences to study either in Spain or Spanish America. Applicants for Spanish America must indicate their preference for Bolivia, Ecuador, Mexico or Peru. Choices by top applicants for Spanish America will be given greatest consideration.

OFFICIAL APPLICATION FORM.

Applicants must use the official 2009 Undergraduate Scholarship Application form (download here).

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS.

All applications must be postmarked not later than February 2, 2009. Those postmarked after this date will not be considered.

JUDGING APPLICATIONS.

Two sub-committees (one for Spain; one for Spanish America) of three judges each will be appointed by Professor Charles B. Moore, Committee Chair of the Sigma Delta Pi Undergraduate Summer Scholarship Competition for the 2008/09 academic year. Working independently and with a given set of criteria, the judges will select the winners. Their decision will be final.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF AWARDS.

Winners will be notified around April 1, 2009.

USE OF SCHOLARSHIPS.

Sigma Delta Pi scholarships MUST be used solely for the purposes stated above, i.e. for study in Spain or Spanish America, and for the length of time specified. Undergraduate Summer Scholarships must be used during the summer of 2009 and may not be used for research purposes or to participate in established college or university-sponsored/directed study abroad programs. Permission will not be made to alter any of these stipulations. Possible transfer credit must be coordinated with the student’s college or university, not with Sigma Delta Pi.

RESPONSIBILITIES OF WINNERS.

By October 1, 2009, each scholarship winner must send via e-mail a passport-size photograph (.jpg or .gif format) and an essay (Word format) of approximately 200 words in Spanish describing the experience of studying abroad to the Executive Secretary-Treasurer, who is also the Editor of Entre Nosotros: Professor Mark P. Del Mastro (delmastrom@citadel.edu).

Awardees unable to undertake the study abroad provided by the scholarship must inform the Executive Secretary-Treasurer immediately and will return to him their stipend. If they fail to inform the Executive Secretary-Treasurer by May 15, 2009 and in sufficient time to award their scholarship to another student, understanding that arrangements have already been made for funding their study abroad, they will be required to reimburse Sigma Delta Pi for the cost of their scholarship.

Sigma Delta Pi reserves the right to refrain from awarding scholarships to certain locations if it determines that circumstances of the prospective host country might detrimentally impact a student's educational experience and/or safety.

If a Chair of the Undergraduate Summer Scholarship Competition and/or a judging committee member is also a chapter adviser, then their chapter is eligible for no more than one (1) undergraduate summer scholarship. An exception may be made if 1) the number of applicants is less than the number of available awards and/or 2) the President, in consultation with the Executive Secretary-Treasurer, concludes that the quality of the applicant pool is deficient.