Baruch's Oldest Honor Society Inducts New Members

The Sigma Alpha Delta Honor Society held its 45th Induction Ceremony on Friday May 7, in the Library building. The ceremony began at 6 p.m. with a short message from one of the sponsors, Kaplan Test Prep. Then there were speeches from both current Sigma Alpha Delta members and alumni. Following the theme of this year's ceremony, "Continuous engagement is key to long-term success," many of the speeches included memories of Sigma Alpha Delta as well as information regarding the alumni's success in their careers.

Ronald Aaron, associate dean of students, attended the ceremony and spoke about his involvement with Sigma Alpha Delta and the satisfaction and fulfillment that comes with volunteering with the society. Aaron has been a Sigma Alpha Delta supporter for many years and has been present at many of the induction ceremonies.

In 1982 he wrote a letter to the president of the society thanking him for the invitation to the ceremony which stated, "the quality of Sigma Alpha members, that I have had the opportunity to meet, suggests that Sigma Alpha Delta will continue as a top-flight student organization for many years to come."

One of the speakers, Dr. Westina Matthews Shatteen, a vice-president at Merrill Lynch and an alumnus, gave an inspiring speech that left the audience in awe. Shatteen stated that as she worked her way up in the business world she noticed the changes that were taking place. The field was becoming much more diverse and she was not the only female, nor was she the only minority. As she looked out on the crowd of inductees who would soon be joining Sigma Alpha Delta, she felt inspired that the trend she noticed would continue with the future generations of Sigma Alpha Delta.

Other guest speakers covered topics that were both nostalgic and relevant to the continuation of Sigma Alpha Delta's traditions. Carlos Coto, Sigma Alpha Delta's current president, spoke of the future of Sigma Alpha Delta. "Next semester we will be bringing big-name speakers to Baruch and I hope to pass along my knowledge and connections to future Sigma Alpha Delta leaders," he said.

George Ortell, an alumnus from 1969, spoke about what Sigma Alpha Delta meant to him and ended his speech with the Baruch cheer, which surprised many who did not realize Baruch had a cheer. Henry Burger, who was a Sigma Alpha Deltan in 1948, stressed the importance of community involvement, which is one of the society's main focuses.

Almost 200 students were inducted and took the oath of membership that night. With the oath came the promise that the inductees will help support Sigma Alpha Delta as much as they can.

Dmitrijs Nahajs, the chairman of events who helped plan and coordinate the evening, said, "This induction ceremony was one of the largest in years. We are happy to welcome the new inductees to Baruch's oldest honor society. They are now part of something that has been special to the Baruch community for over 70 years now. Through this pool of individuals, a lot can be accomplished because everybody involved is distinct in one way or another. We can only progress and move forward, the new inductees will help us achieve our goals."

The night ended with a buffet dinner and a chance for current Sigma Alpha Delta members, new inductees, and the alumni to speak to one another. This time provided great networking opportunities since many of the alumni have contacts within companies as well as valuable knowledge about the business world.

Sigma Alpha Delta is proud of the connection that has remained between the alumni and the current members. Over the last semester they have managed to bring together six decades of alumni and create a support group between members and alumni. Coto would like the new inductees to know that, "Sigma Alpha Delta has both the support of corporate affiliates as well as prominent alumni," but also relies on their future participation.