Sigma Phi Alpha (ΣΦΑ) is a national honorary society for women in the field of dental hygiene.[1]
History
Sigma Phi Alpha originated at the March 1958 business meeting of the Dental Hygiene Education section of the American Dental Hygiene Education Association (now American Dental Education Association).[1] Its purpose is to promote, recognize, and honor scholarship of students in oral or dental hygiene schools.[1] Chapters can only be chartered at schools with a dental hygiene program and membership must be in the upper twenty percent of their class.[1]
The first chapter of Sigma Phi Alpha was installed as the Alpha chapter of Northwestern University in 1958.[1] Seven other chapters were also installed in 1958, along with the Supreme chapter for honorary members.[1] The society became international with the installation of Delta Eta chapter at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Canada.
The society's emblem is a rectangular gold keypin with the Greek letters ΣΦΑ in a diagonal arrangement from the upper left corner to the lower right corner.[3] Its colors are deep purple and bright gold.
The Greek letters ΣΦΑ represent Sophia meaning wisdom, Philanthropia meaning human feeling and action, and Arete meaning valor and virtue.[4]
Most of the society's 139 chapters are in the United States, divided into three geographical regions: central, eastern, and western.
Scholarships
The society awards four competitive scholarships annually through the American Dental Education Association (ADEA) and American Dental Hygienists' Association Institute of Oral Health.[5]
The Sigma Phi Alpha Certificate/Associate Scholarship is provided to students seeking a certificate or associate degree at a school with an active Sigma Phi Alpha chapter.[6]
The Sigma Phi Alpha Undergraduate Scholarship is given to a member or potential member of the society who is seeking a baccalaureate degree at a school with an active Sigma Phi Alpha chapter.[7]
The Sigma Phi Alpha Graduate Scholarship is awarded to a member or potential member of the society enrolled in a graduate program in dental hygiene or a related field.[8]
The ADEA/Sigma Phi Alpha Linda DeVore Scholarship is provided to students at the baccalaureate, master’s, or doctoral degree levels.[9] DeVore was a professor of dental hygiene and a former president of the ADEA and the supreme chapter of Sigma Phi Alpha.[9]
^Anson, Jack L.; Marchenasi, Robert F., eds. (1991) [1879]. Baird's Manual of American Fraternities (20th ed.). Indianapolis, IN: Baird's Manual Foundation, Inc. p. VII-52. ISBN978-0963715906.
