Establish a chapter at your institution
Educators are specially positioned to identify the highest achieving students within their dental hygiene programs. Motivated and organized faculty and staff members who value raising up leaders and celebrating exceptional student achievements are ideal creators of new, vibrant chapters of Sigma Phi Alpha (SPA).
Interested in what it takes to start a chapter? Review the simple steps below.
Tips for a successful chapter launch
Once your new chapter is established, you might wonder, what’s next? We are actively creating resources to assist you in launching and sustaining a new chapter. For some of those resources, check out the tips below.
Tip #1: Set up and show up
“80% of success is showing up,” Woody Allen once said. The same is true for cultivating a healthy chapter. Coordinate meetings and encourage members to attend. Create value and communicate the importance of gathering.
Focus on relationship building and determine what meeting structure fits your chapter culture. Meetings don’t have to be unnecessarily long or frequent, but they should be meaningful and worthwhile.
Tip #2: Share scholarships
Keep tabs on Sigma Phi Alpha scholarships. Every year, SPA sponsors scholarships through American Dental Education Association (ADEA) and American Dental Hygienists’ Association (ADHA). As opportunities arise, remind students of sponsorship requirements and deadlines.
Tip #3: Encourage engagement
No matter your meeting frequency, maintain authentic and practical communication with your members. Remind them about upcoming national events like ADEA’s Annual Session. Share SPA news and updates (A dedicated webpage is coming soon!), and encourage members to submit their own wins and updates to be published on the SPA website.
Tip #4: Collect updates
As you stay in touch with your members, pay attention to the same kinds of actions that prompted you to welcome them to your chapter. Take note of extraordinary achievements, and share those successes with all of Sigma Phi Alpha!
Tip #5: Connect with other chapters
Reach out to other chapters and discover what has and hasn’t worked for them.
Add your chapter to the national list
Sigma Phi Alpha has more than 110 active chapters in North America. Check out the list of chapters that you could join by starting your own!
