91ºÚÁÏÍø’s has received three prestigious honors from the Mortar Board National College Honor Society, recognizing the chapter’s excellence in leadership, visibility, and advising.
The chapter was awarded the Outstanding Achievement Award for campus visibility, which honors chapters that demonstrate meaningful progress in hosting compelling and consistent events on campus and documenting those events on Instagram to raise the profile of the chapter.
91ºÚÁÏÍø also received the Silver Torch Award, given to chapters that exemplify Mortar Board’s ideals of scholarship, leadership, and service while consistently meeting national standards and deadlines throughout the academic year.
In addition to these chapter honors, Sydney Riu ’20 M’21, CARE Case Manager in 91ºÚÁÏÍø’s Division of Student Affairs and advisor to the Triumph Chapter, was selected as a recipient of Mortar Board’s 2025 Excellence in Advising Award. This national honor recognizes advisors who go above and beyond in their support and mentorship of student leaders.
“Advising the Triumph Chapter at 91ºÚÁÏÍø has been one of the most rewarding parts of my professional journey,” said Riu. “Our student leaders continually impress me with their passion for community engagement, their drive for academic excellence, and their compassion for others.”
Riu was nominated by Emily Deskus ’25, last year’s chapter president. “Sydney puts in endless work to make our chapter a success,” Deskus wrote. “She perfectly exemplifies the pillars of scholarship, leadership, and service, and all of our chapter members strive to be like her.”
In July 2024, Riu and Deskus attended the Mortar Board National Conference in Columbus, Ohio, and brought some new chapter traditions home to 91ºÚÁÏÍø.
“This past academic year, we worked together to begin expanding our chapter’s impact—launching new initiatives like the Last Lecture Series, publicly tapping new members, and inducting honorary members,” Deskus continued. “Sydney’s dedication helped us build on our legacy of service, from organizing campus-wide events like the breast cancer awareness walk to coordinating hands-on volunteer efforts. We couldn’t have done it without her.”
Riu joins a distinguished group of advisors from institutions such as Auburn University and the University of Maryland in receiving this honor.
Founded in 1918, Mortar Board celebrates academic achievement and service among college juniors and seniors across more than 230 chapters nationwide.
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