USU Students Attend and Win Awards at International English Honors Convention 

Fifteen English Department undergraduates from USU Logan, Price, and Ephraim campuses presented at the 100th Sigma Tau Delta International English Honors Society Convention in St. Louis, Missouri, April 3-6. Students, accompanied by faculty advisors Professor Christine Cooper-Rompato and Associate Professor Michaelann Nelson, traveled to St. Louis where they delivered roundtable presentations on this year’s “common reader” (Then the War by Pulitzer-prize winning poet Carl Phillips) as well as individual presentations featuring critical essays and creative writing. 

Logan’s chapter brought home three awards! Basil Payne won second prize for original poetry; Kris Carpenter won second prize in the category of critical essay in British literature, and Logan’s Rho Tau chapter tied for second prize for best chapter display. In addition, Michaelann was elected to the board of Regents for the international organization. At the close of the jam-packed conference, students reflected on how much they had learned from attending paper sessions, workshops, lectures, and readings, as well as from delivering their own papers. For the new convention attendees, it was first time most had presented their work in front of an audience they didn’t know. Many noted that the convention helped them to connect with peers from other universities. April Allbee, a first-time attendee from Ephraim, commented, “This conference has had a profound impact on me. I feel like I have finally found my people.” Ariel Longoria, a first-time attendee from Logan, said, “This conference made me confident in my place as an English major. I can’t wait to work on a paper for next year’s conference!” Kaylee Jo Stocks, another first-time attendee, also stated that she grew as a writer and a person: “It helped me gain confidence to take my writing seriously and get out of my comfort zone.” Aimee Olson, a returning conference-goer, asserted, “Attending the annual Sigma Tau Delta Convention is one of my favorite undergraduate experiences. It’s given me the opportunity to travel to new places and engage in collaborative learning. It also hones my writing.”  

Roundtables and individual presentations are listed below, with campuses noted. 

Roundtables:  

• “Zoopoetics in Then the War: Animals and Chimeras” Roundtable: April Allbee (Ephraim), Shayna Butler (Logan), Dakota Mecham (Vernal), Aimee Olson (Logan), Beth Pace (Logan), chaired by Kris Carpenter (Logan) 
• “The Queer Forest in Then the War” Roundtable: Zachary Brady (Logan), Kris Carpenter (Logan), Basil Payne (Logan), Kaylee Jo Stocks; chaired by Preston Waddoups (Logan) 
• “Liminal Love in Then the War Roundtable: William Clark (Logan), Ariel Longoria (Logan), Ashleigh Sabin (Logan), Zada Stephens (Logan), Katharine Tesar (Southern Utah University), chaired by Aimee Olson (Logan) 

Individual Presentations:  

• “Favorite Color” (creative nonfiction), Zach Brady (Logan)  
• “The Justice of Giving in Shakespeare's King Lear” (critical essay, award winner), Kris Carpenter (Logan)  
• “Screaming, Suicidality, and Cilantro” (fiction), Aimee Olson (Logan)  
• “Queerness in Nature” (poetry, award winner), Basil Payne (Logan) 
• “Letters to You and Other Obsessive Endeavors” (poetry), Ashleigh Sabin (Logan) 
• “Double Lives in Queer Classic Literature” (critical essay), Sierra Slaugh (Logan)  
• “Cather, Connection, and Modernism” (critical essay), Preston Waddoups (Logan)  

USU Sigma Tau Delta students would like to thank Logan’s English Department, the Office of Undergraduate Research, the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, the Honors Program, and the Center for Intersectional Gender and Research Studies, as well as the Statewide Offices in Vernal and Ephraim, for making this conference possible.