Phi Eta Sigma’s national headquarters office has been closely following the developments concerning the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and how it is impacting our member schools. Many schools have already or will soon transition to online/distance/virtual instruction. We understand how disruptive this transition is on your entire campus community and on the learning process. In the midst of these rapidly changing developments, we want to reassure you that the safety and well-being of our members and advisors is our number one priority.

 

Most importantly, we urge you to follow the protocols set by your local institution regarding events and gatherings on campus. For Phi Eta Sigma, our executive council has met and come to the following guidelines on how we proceed forward at this time:

 

1. Induction Ceremonies

We realize that induction ceremonies and/or commencement activities may be postponed or amended in some way. We want to reassure you, however, that even if a public ceremony is not possible, you are still able to offer your eligible students induction into Phi Eta Sigma this semester and beyond. If you need any assistance with setting up an online ceremony or creating new digital recruitment strategies, please let us know. Your chapter does not have to hold an in-person induction ceremony. We are here to work with you in providing alternative ways of conducting inductions based on what you decide will work best for your students in compliance with your local institution’s guidelines. Examples of this could include holding an online, virtual induction ceremony or postponing the ceremony until the fall semester. Please email headquarters at HQ@phietasigma.org with any date changes or more specific questions.

 

2. Scholarship Applications

Our scholarship application process will proceed as planned. We want to encourage you to share with your members that the timeline to the scholarship application process for the spring will not be impacted by the coronavirus, and will proceed as normal. We will be hosting weekly zoom calls for advisers and members about the scholarship process and offering tips for applicants beginning in April. Applications will open online on April 1 and close on May 1 at 11:59 PM. You can read more specific details about the process provided later in this newsletter.

 

3. Order Processing and Shipment

At this time, we are still processing orders for new members and chapter orders weekly beginning the week of March 23. This includes individual orders submitted by members online for graduation regalia.

 

4. 2020 National Convention

While our convention is slightly more than 6 months away, and we hope that COVID-19 is no longer a threat to our public health by September. We want to be proactive in our response to the needs of our chapters, and we recognize the difficulty it would put on our chapters to organize a trip so early in the fall semester. For this reason, the executive council has decided to shift our convention to a digital platform. We understand that this is a disappointing decision for many reasons, we are confident that we will be able to provide a quality experience for our members and advisers. Also with the new format, we are hoping that even more chapters and members will be able to participate than ever before! We will be providing more details on this new convention format and our regional conferences that will be taking place in the spring of 2021 in the coming weeks. So stay tuned!