Sigma Delta Pi: Rediscovering a Century, 1919-2019

By Mark P del Mastro

On Friday evening, November 14, 1919, at the University of California, Berkeley, a charismatic and dynamic 18-year-old undergraduate Spanish major, Ruth Helen Barnes, hosted six other students at her residence to start what would eventually become the largest collegiate foreign language honor society in the U.S.: Sigma Delta Pi.

In 1995 and to commemorate the Society's 75th anniversary, T. Earle Hamilton, a past president of Sigma Delta Pi, authored the first account of this journey: Sigma Delta Pi: A Brief History, 1919-1994. Building upon Hamilton's seminal work, Mark P. Del Mastro's Rediscovering a Century, 1919-2019 takes a deeper dive into Sigma Delta Pi's history to uncover many forgotten stories, clarify long-held inaccuracies, reveal numerous rare photographs, and recount the last 25 years since the 1995 release of A Brief History. Del Mastro's centennial contribution will appeal to anyone interested in the tale of a young woman whose energy and vision formed a national academic enterprise in support of the Spanish language and Hispanic culture throughout the U.S.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1588713482
• ISBN13: 9781588713483
• Release Date: April 2020
• Publisher: Juan de La Cuesta-Hispanic Monographs
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 2.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 8.5" x 11.0"