Dickinson State University’s (DSU) Alpha-Lambda-Pi chapter of Phi Alpha Theta National History Honor Society recently celebrated its 2024 Division I Best Chapter with a reception and induction ceremony and a trip to Washington DC.
DSU students Isaac Baker, Lucas Bussman, Kaylin Garza, and Zaylee Ziebarth and Dr. Jeff Wells, Dennis and Vaune Johnson Endowed Chair in U.S. History, professor of history, and chapter advisor, attended the Phi Alpha Theta Biennial Convention, January 2-5, at Washington DC. The Dickinson State University Heritage Foundation (DSUHF) provided financial support for the trip.
Baker served as Alpha-Lambda-Pi’s official delegate to the business meeting. DSU’s 2024 Best Chapter Award was recognized during the convention’s Presidential Banquet.
“The most important thing I learned [from the conference] is that there are so many perspectives in history and life,” Ziebarth, a first-year history education student from Kinsey, Montana. “Every person can have a different take on things. One person might look at an event in history and see one thing while another would not have thought to look at it that way. People can take many different approaches to what they see in history. Some event might be overlooked or seen as insignificant, but one person will dig deep and find a reason to pay attention to that event.”
In addition to attending the conference, the students visited Arlington National Cemetery, US Senator Kevin Cramer’s office in the Hart Senate Office Building, the US Capitol, the National Archives, the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, the National Mall, the Washington Monument, the World War II Memorial, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial, the Korean War Memorial, the United States Botanic Garden, the National Museum of the American Indian, and more.
“Going through Arlington National Cemetery really brings into perspective of the bloodshed of American troops over the nation's short history,” said Bussman, of Mandan, who graduated in December 2024 with a BA in History. “And as a veteran, I give immense respect to those that serve today, and those who served before me.”
The Washington DC trip was not the only recent big event for Alpha-Lambda-Pi. On December 4, the chapter hosted a reception and initiation ceremony in the Theodore Roosevelt Center (TRC) Fisher Gallery in Lowman Walton Hall. The chapter inducted ten students, which is the most DSU students to join the honors society in any single initiation ceremony. To become a Phi Alpha Theta member, undergraduate students must maintain a grade point average (GPA) of 3.1 in history with an overall GPA of 3.0. While being a history major is not mandatory, students must complete at least 12 credit hours in history to be eligible.
“The initiation of ten students is an indicator of the vibrancy of the history-related programs at DSU,” Wells said. “These new initiates will help us to continue to promote the study of history on campus and beyond.”
Maddie Olsen, a Spring 2024 DSU graduate and the chapter’s Spring 2024 president, presided over the initiation ceremony with assistance from Phi Alpha Theta members Stefanie Aulner, student success advisor; Sarah Crossingham, assistant professor of education; Sarah Griffis, library services technician; Dr. William Hansard, TRC outreach coordinator; Alexandra Hecht, TRC digital collections cataloger and archivist; and Dr. David Meier, professor of history.
The new initiates and their hometowns are:
Isaac C. Baker, Verndale, MN
Alexandria Bibb, Dickinson, ND
Lucas Dean Bussman, Mandan, ND
Jesse Chapweske, Miles City, MT
Jaret T. Hutmacher, Dickinson, ND
Grant E. Kees, Bowman, ND
Tyson A. Krahe, Great Falls, MT
Logan C. Kuehl, Vacaville, CA
Cade S. Martian, Bowman, ND
Jesse McCann, Buffalo, SD
The Phi Alpha Theta chapter at DSU continues to thrive, marked by its 2024 Division I Best Chapter Award and the initiation of ten new members. Events like the Washington, D.C. trip and induction ceremony showcase DSU’s commitment to academic excellence and the study of history. These accomplishments highlight the chapter’s role in fostering a vibrant history community at DSU.