Claire Knowles, graduate assistant and president of the Delta Gamma chapter of Sigma Delta Pi at The University of Memphis, believes her chapter helps to connect the growing Hispanic society to the rest of Memphis.
"The main goals are to create connections between the Hispanic community and the English-speaking community," Knowles said. "Also, the goals are to increase interest in the Spanish language and Spanish culture."
The importance of reaching out to the Hispanic community, according to Knowles, is to create a better understanding between the non-English speaking community and the English speaking society. She said there is a lot of prejudice and misconceptions about Hispanic people abound, so by encouraging students to go to the community, they can have a better understanding with the Spanish-speaking community.
Knowles said being president of the Delta Gamma chapter, her duties include recruiting more members to the chapter by going from classroom to classroom once a year to find possible members. At one time, she said there were only two members of Delta Gamma, but once Knowles became president, she has recruited 13 new members. Also, another responsibility she must carry out is to help organize any events such as this Friday's meeting.
The requirements to join the Delta Gamma chapter are quite high. A student must be at least a junior, have taken a 3000-level or higher Spanish culture or Spanish language course and must have at least a 3.0 grade point average.
Since the chapter has not been active for several years, this year, the chapter is focusing more on activities and involvement in the Hispanic community.
"This semester, the goal is to have more participation in the Latino community," Knowles said. "So, we hope from this reception that we can create positive connections, positive working relationships, so that students at The U of M can participate in voluntary work, like teaching English as a second language."
Stacey Margarita Johnson, graduate assistant and Delta Gamma member, said the Hispanic population is a growing community and it is important for organizations to build relationships between The University and the Hispanic community.
"Memphis has the fastest growing population of Hispanics in the Mid-South," Johnson said. "Spanish is going to be an important part of the community, they are going to have a lot of economic power because they are going to buy goods and services and your children will be going to school with Hispanic children. It's going to be very common in Memphis."
The main problems many Hispanics face today are the inability to communicate with others and many labor issues, according to Johnson. She said organizations such as Delta Gamma helps to bring students from other organizations on campus who are interested in doing community service.
"One big problem is the language barrier, so programs (are important), especially for children of people who have moved into the area -- the children go to Memphis schools but don't speak English," Johnson said. "It is a huge barrier. Another problem is labor problems -- maybe people don't have work papers and are taken advantage of by large companies. We all love the Hispanic community and we want treach out to it."
This Friday, Delta Gamma will be hosting a guest lecture from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Faulkner Lounge in The University Center. Guests will range from the League of United Latin American Citizens to other representatives from Latin specialists.
"I am very excited about Friday," Knowles said. "It is an important step for our organization. Though we focus on the academic side, this is a new road we are taking, getting more involved with the community."
