Award Cycle: Fall
Aims and Eligibility
Sigma Kappa Delta is thrilled to offer a dynamic Writing Challenge to all active student and faculty members in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month each year.
Our Hispanic Heritage Month Writing Challenge draws inspiration from Nilo Cruz’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play Anna in the Tropics (2003). Anna in the Tropics is set in Ybor City, (Tampa), Florida in 1930. The romantic drama deals with a family of cigar makers whose loves and lives are played out against the backdrop of America in the midst of the Depression.
Join us as we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month by embracing Cruz’s profound exploration of heritage, identity, and human experience. Let your voice be heard through poetry and prose, honoring the spirit of creativity and cultural expression. Together, we’re shaping a narrative that echoes the vibrancy and resilience of Hispanic communities and cultural identities across the nation and beyond.
Read more about Nilo Cruz.
How to Apply
Submissions for the Hispanic Heritage Month Writing Challenge are accepted through AwardSpring. The link to access the Sigma Tau Delta AwardSpring platform will be posted on the AwardSpring Application informational page of our website once the Fall Awards Cycle opens.
If you are using AwardSpring for the first time, you must create an account by clicking “Register.” If you have used AwardSpring previously, you should login using your email address and existing password.
Required Materials
- Submit no more than 3 pages of original poetry or creative prose (prose should be double-spaced) in a Word document.
- All writing must be inspired by Anna in the Tropics by Nilo Cruz.
- Include a brief paragraph explaining how the submitted work was influenced by the book.
Evaluation, Selection, and Awards
- The Central Office will verify membership status.
- Judges will be the members of the Sigma Kappa Delta evaluation team.
- The winners of the Hispanic Heritage Month Writing Challenge will have their work published in Hedera helix.
Deadline
View the Opportunities Overview page for the Hispanic Heritage Month Writing Challenge Award application window.
Questions
Address questions to skd@niu.edu.
