BUFFALO, NY – Lauren Rachal ’15 is the recipient of a 2014 Pi Delta Phi Mary E. Gutermuth Scholarship. Rachal is a junior with a dual major in French and communication studies at Canisius University.
Pi Delta Phi is the National French Honor Society. The award, which entitles Rachal to study at the Université du Québec à Chicoutimi, includes full tuition for five weeks (July 6-August 9), housing and board, $500 in travel expenses and a $150 stipend for course-related cultural excursions.
“I’m honored and grateful to be chosen for this scholarship,” says Rachal, who is the first student ever from Canisius University to be awarded a Pi Delta Phi scholarship. “It will be so enriching to spend time in a culture that I otherwise would not have been able to experience. I also look forward to advancing my French language skills.”
Rachal is a member of Nu Chi, the Canisius University chapter of Pi Delta Phi. She is also a member of Lamda Pi Eta, the National Communication Honor Society and serves on the college’s Faculty-Student Liaison Committee. During summer 2013 she volunteered to teach English as a Second Language to a family of six from the Congo who live in Amherst.
Rachal is a student of Eileen M. Angelini, PhD, professor of French at Canisius, Fulbright Scholar, Chevalier dans l’Ordre Palmes Académiques, and Northeast vice president, Pi Delta Phi. Angelini established Nu Chi, the Canisius University Chapter of Pi Delta Phi, in 2006 (Angelini’s first year at Canisius University).
“Lauren has a genuine enthusiasm for the French language and culture and cares deeply about her learning experience,” says Angelini. “This scholarship will not only provide Lauren with an exceptional language and cultural immersion experience but will enable her to fulfill the study abroad requirement to complete her major in French.”
Canisius is one of 28 Jesuit universities in the nation and the premier private university in Western New York.
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