NATCHITOCHES – Northwestern State University’s Eta Mu chapter of Phi Beta Delta, the honor society for international scholars, inducted 16 new members April 21 in a program led by chapter president Dr. Weiwen Liao.
Faculty and staff inductees are Dr. Charles Pellegrin, Shea Montgomery, Dr. Erick Kigen, Dr. Charles King, Dr. Francene Lemoine and Valentina Herazo-Alvarez.
Student inductees are Juan Sebastian Castilla, Maria Alzate Castaneda, Zaiba Daud, Andrea Fernandez Garcia, Janiel Moore, Gabriela Forero Salcedo, Jessica Parra Serena, Juan Padilla, Lia Portillo and Paige Wise.
The Eta Mu chapter named two students as recipients of Phi Beta Delta Scholarships. They are Juan Sebastian Castilla of Cartagena, Colombia, and Amber Ford of Ball. Ford is the scholarship recipient for Fall 2023 and Padilla for Spring 2024. The purpose of the scholarship is to support international students in their studies abroad.
As part of her Business Administration Management Concentration, Ford studied at NSU’s partner institution, Universite’ d’ Angers, in Angers, France, where she was immersed in a completely different culture and business environment. She said the experience was life changing. She is involved with several organizations including Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society, Blue Key Honor Society, Demon Volunteers in Progress, the NSU Food Pantry, Demon Mentor Network, Phi Beta Delta International Scholars and Bibliotheque volunteer. She wil graduate in May.
Padilla is a double major in Business Administration and Computer Information Systems. He is very active in the Natchitoches community and is one of the founding members of the Association for the Preservation of Natchitoches Historical Student Society. He has also served as a student worker in the Eugene P. Watson Memorial Library and has been a recruiter for the International Resource Center. He is a music minister at First Baptist Church of Natchitoches and a former member of Northwestern Chamber Orchestra. He also served as one of the leaders of the media team for the Spirit of Northwestern Demon Marching Band.
Two students were awarded Phi Beta Delta Scholarships from the Eta Mu chapter. From left are amber Ford, Dr. Beth Prejean, chair of the Scholarship Development Committee, and Juan Padilla.
Founded in 1986, Phi Beta Delta is an international society with over 200 chapters worldwide. Phi Beta Delta is the first honor society dedicated to recognizing scholarly achievement in international education.
