The spring of 2025 marked professor Carolyn Towles’s final semester as Liberty University’s Sigma Tau Delta Zeta Tau faculty advisor and chapter representative after three decades of cultivating the school’s English honor society.
This decision to retire as faculty advisor was under development for a few years, and Towles knew she wanted someone who would continue to foster growth and community in Sigma Tau in her place.
That person turned out to be professor Nathan Valle, former officer of the same honor society that Towles has supervised over the years.
“I was asked to come to (Sigma Tau) meetings the summer of ’23,” Valle said. “When Carolyn told us that she was planning to move into retirement, she told us that it would be a good time for someone to learn. So, she came and said, ‘Do you want to learn?’”
Valle’s decision to take on the mantle as chapter representative was not immediate. In preparation, he spent the last year attending Sigma Tau meetings, helping plan events and learning the ropes.
“Having that year with (Towles), learning from her … I think it was vital to making sure that things ran smoothly after (her retirement),” Valle said.
Sigma Tau has grown exponentially over the years. January of 2024 reported 77 active members, and 28 new members were inducted the following year.
Though the influx in members comes with responsibility, Valle expressed his excitement for Sigma Tau’s growth.
“We’re lucky to still be growing,” Valle said. “The people who come (to Liberty) as English and Writing majors or minors, they have a natural curiosity for the things that are good in this life. We always strive for the good and the true and the beautiful in this discipline. And so, when they come (to Sigma Tau), they find like-minded people easily.”
Sigma Tau officer Annabelle Welch reinforced this idea.
“There is always such positive peer pressure to strive for excellence by utilizing your own unique intelligence,” Welch said.
Valle emphasized that Sigma Tau promotes community, while challenging its members academically and fostering cultural and spiritual engagement.
“It’s a place to have fun, but we do that by doing important and good things,” Valle said. “And the fun happens as a byproduct of that. My goal is to pair the goodness of community with the spiritual and the academic.”
Sigma Tau’s various events hosted throughout the year encourage these values. The society hosts field trips to historical literary sites, professor talks and drives for Operation Christmas Child, Blue Ridge Pregnancy Center and Miriam’s House, the last of which they are looking for sponsor families.
Valle said Sigma Tau’s flourishing is due to Towles’ hard work over the years and the officers’ behind-the-scenes effort and diligence.
“Carolyn did a great job getting this to a healthy position,” Valle said. “I’m lucky to be taking the torch. I realized very quickly that the people we have in the officer positions are really what makes the advisor role just that much easier. They are just good at what they do.”
Valle hopes the students in Sigma Tau are inspired to persevere.
“Students deal with a ton of anxiety and stress about the world, period,” Valle said. “So, one of the things I think Sigma Tau should be really good at is reminding people to keep going. The church is imperfect, but it’s filled with God’s people. Your writing is imperfect, but it’s filled with the testament of the God who made you. Keep going.”
To learn more about Sigma Tau, visit their Instagram page @lu_sigmatau.
Gallagher is a feature writer for the Liberty Champion.