Order of the Torch & Maintaining the Flame

The 2023-24 Order of the Torch and Maintaining the Flame submission deadline has passed. Check back in April 2025 for the 2024-25 application.

Order of the Torch

The Order of the Torch is the annual award for the most outstanding chapters of Alpha Lambda Delta. Chapters submit a scrapbook describing their activities during the past year. The scrapbooks are then judged by a committee of Board of Directors members, and the winning chapters are presented with an award banner. ALD has been recognizing outstanding chapters with the Order of the Torch Award since 1989.

2024 Order of the Torch Recipients:

Maintaining the Flame

Chapters who are awarded the Order of the Torch are ineligible to apply for the award for the next four years. To reward chapters that have continued to excel in programming, activities, and service, the Board of Directors bestows the Maintaining the Flame award to chapters who are ineligible for the Order of the Torch. Winners receive a pin to affix to their Order of the Torch banner.

2024 Maintaining the Flame Recipients:

Application Process

Chapters must submit their applications electronically. We encourage chapters to be as creative as possible in your submission – it may be a standard scrapbook (PDF), a PowerPoint, a video montage, etc. Any way you best can document your chapter. Applications open mid-April and are due June 1 each year. 

The judging criteria are the same for both awards (Order of the Torch and Maintaining the Flame). The most important thing to keep in mind is that your submission should be more than just pictures. We like to see your smiling faces, but we need to know why you’re smiling! In addition to photos, competitive applications should include captions, quotes, letters, emails, flyers, agendas, minutes, brochures, ticket stubs, screenshots of websites, social media pages, video testimonials, video footage, and anything else that may help document your success throughout the year. 

More specifically, applications will be judged on the following:

Chapter Involvement - How successful is the chapter in getting its members actively involved in service and other chapter projects? How many events did the chapter hold and how well attended were those events? How active is the chapter on campus and in the surrounding community? Does the chapter host and take part in numerous and varied service, leadership, fellowship, and other projects throughout the course of the year?  Evidence of chapter involvement might include photos of students at events, attendance sheets, flyers, event summaries, captions, quotes from members, thank you letters from the community, etc.
Chapter Communication - How effectively does the chapter communicate with the membership, with campus leadership, and with the campus and community at large? Evidence of effective communication may include photos of meetings, emails, agendas, minutes, letters, Facebook page screenshots, website screenshots, Zoom recordings, etc.
Campus Visibility – How aware is the campus and community of ALD? Evidence of good campus visibility may include flyers, newspaper clippings, press releases, social media posts, event co-sponsorship, letters from the community and campus officials, and photos of events on campus, online, and in the community.
Presentation - Is the submission prepared in a careful, attractive manner?

Award Specific Requirements:
If your chapter has won the Order of the Torch within the past four years, you should apply for Maintaining the Flame. Your chapter should continue to show innovation and improvement - not simply maintaining the status quo - in all areas to be competitive for Maintaining the Flame. If you've recently won Order of the Torch and don't know when you're eligible to apply again, contact ALD Headquarters at comms@nationalald.org.

The 2023-24 Order of the Torch and Maintaining the Flame submission deadline has passed. Check back in April 2025 for the 2024-25 application.