History of the Beta Lambda Chapter
The Beta Lambda chapter of Sigma Zeta at Messiah College was welcomed into Sigma Zeta at the induction ceremony held on the Messiah College campus on Sunday December 5, 1993. A short worship service followed the induction ceremony. Beta Lambda was joined in the occasion by members of the Alpha Chi chapter from Eastern College. National Past President Dr. Joseph Sheldon of Beta Lambda and National President Elect Mr. Mike McCusker of Alpha Chi officiated at the ceremony. Officers for the 1993-1994 academic year were Dan Sharp (President), Geoff Erb (Vice President), Alicia Valentine (Secretary), Jen MacNeill (Treasurer), and Carla Heisey and Scott Phillips (Co-historians). Six members of Beta Lambda attended the March 17-19, 1994 National Convention at Hillsdale College, Michigan. Papers were presented by two Beta Lambda students -- Austin R. Mast (The Lower Susquehanna River Gorge and Flood Plain (USA) as a Riparian Refugium for Vernal, Forest Floor Herbs), and Grogory S. Aist (Optimal Forest Management: A Spreadsheet Stage-class Model). Both Greg and Austin subsequently entered Ph.D. programs and both received National Science Foundation Fellowships -- Greg in computer science at Carnegie-Mellon University and Austin in plant ecology at the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
