Service Award

About the Award

Sigma Tau Delta's Service Award honors local chapters performing exemplary community service projects and benefits the agencies served by those chapters. The Society will make a limited number of awards, each of which will consist of a plaque and up to $200 for the chapter and a contribution of up to $500 to the agency.

A variety of community service projects are eligible for consideration. For ideas, see the many examples of projects listed on the Chapter Life: Service page. If you have questions regarding project eligibility, please contact the chair of the Service Committee, your Regent, or your Regional Student Representative.

Eligibility

Any active chapter is eligible to apply for a Service Award, but no chapter may receive a Service Award in consecutive years. Active chapters are also eligible to apply for a Project Grant and/or an Outstanding Chapter Award and may use relevant information assembled for the Service Award application when applying for a Project Grant and/or an Outstanding Chapter Award. Specific application requirements are posted with each award description.

How to Apply

Submit the application by email from a Chapter Advisor's school email address. By emailing the application, the Chapter Advisor is attesting to the accuracy of the materials.

address the email to sigmatdapply@niu.edu;
in the subject line, type SERVICE AWARDS;
ATTACH the following three (3) items as Word documents (doc or docx) or in PDF, titled with Service first followed by the abbreviated name of your school and then each of the bolded headings:
Examples: Service MYU narrative.doc; Service MYU advisor.doc; Service MYU agency.doc
1. Applicant Information and Narrative
  1. List the following first, preceding the narrative:
    - Name of service project
    - Chapter and school that undertook the project
    - Number of active members in chapter
    - Name and contact information of student preparing the application (mail and email addresses, phone numbers)
    - Name and contact information for the Chapter Advisor(s) (mail and email addresses, phone numbers)
  1. Provide written narrative, not to exceed 300 words, describing the service project, including
    - Name, date, and place of the service project
    - Brief explanation of importance of service performed and its connection to the goals of the Society
    - Details on the various stages in the concept, planning, preparation, and carrying out of the project to convey understanding of the who, what, when, where, why, and how of the project
    - Target audience
    - Number of chapter members actually participating (important information demonstrating the chapter's commitment to the project)
    - Name of the agency to receive the award, along with payment details including the agency's official name and address
2. Letter from a Chapter Advisor explaining the significance of the project for the chapter and for the agency served. Include the mailing address, email address, and phone number of this Advisor.
3. Letter from a representative of the agency served attesting to the significance of the project from the point of view of its recipient. Include the mailing address, email address, and phone number of the agency representative.

Deadline

See the Awards Overview page for the Service Award application window.

Final Project Reflection

Following receipt of the award, a final report must be submitted as a narrative (300-800 words) or a video (2-3 minutes) suitable for posting on the Society's blog. Questions about your final report should be directed to sigmatdapply@niu.edu. Failure to submit a final project report will jeopardize a chapter's chance of winning future awards.

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