LDS Student Association
Encyclopedia
LDS Student Association is an organization affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints which offers Latter-day Saint university and college students and others social, religious, and recreational activities.
The LDSSA was established in 1960, and today a chapter of the LDSSA exists in every location that an Institute of Religion
of the Church Educational System
has been established. Every Latter-day Saint student is automatically a member of the local LDSSA. Interested non-members of the church may join by enrolling at the Institute of Religion building. Each local chapter is administered by a stake president, who delegates most of the day-to-day responsibilities of the LDSSA to a president and council chosen from among the student members of the LDSSA.
LDSSA chapters at some schools (for example, Harvard College
) are not formally and directly governed by the LDS Church, as a result of official school requirements mandating the "local autonomy" of recognized campus organizations. However, they still interact with the local Institutes of Religion and church organization structure in ways similar to those of other LDSSA chapters. One key difference is that such LDSSA chapters hold elections for their president and other board officers, rather than those officers being appointed by local LDS church leadership.
In some areas of the United States
, the members of the LDSSA may also be members of the Sigma Gamma Chi
fraternity
or the Lambda Delta Sigma sorority
.
Two key figures in establishing the LDSSA were W. Rolfe Kerr
and Elaine A. Cannon
.
The LDSSA was established in 1960, and today a chapter of the LDSSA exists in every location that an Institute of Religion
Institute of Religion
Institutes of Religion provide religious educational classes for young single adult and university students who belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
of the Church Educational System
Church Educational System
The Church Educational System of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints consists of several institutions that provide religious and secular education for both Latter-day Saint and non-Latter-day Saint elementary, secondary, and post-secondary students and adult learners...
has been established. Every Latter-day Saint student is automatically a member of the local LDSSA. Interested non-members of the church may join by enrolling at the Institute of Religion building. Each local chapter is administered by a stake president, who delegates most of the day-to-day responsibilities of the LDSSA to a president and council chosen from among the student members of the LDSSA.
LDSSA chapters at some schools (for example, Harvard College
Harvard College
Harvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...
) are not formally and directly governed by the LDS Church, as a result of official school requirements mandating the "local autonomy" of recognized campus organizations. However, they still interact with the local Institutes of Religion and church organization structure in ways similar to those of other LDSSA chapters. One key difference is that such LDSSA chapters hold elections for their president and other board officers, rather than those officers being appointed by local LDS church leadership.
In some areas of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, the members of the LDSSA may also be members of the Sigma Gamma Chi
Sigma Gamma Chi
Sigma Gamma Chi is the name of the fraternal organization sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . Though it once was a national organization, it now only operates at the University of Utah.-History:...
fraternity
Fraternities and sororities
Fraternities and sororities are fraternal social organizations for undergraduate students. In Latin, the term refers mainly to such organizations at colleges and universities in the United States, although it is also applied to analogous European groups also known as corporations...
or the Lambda Delta Sigma sorority
Fraternities and sororities
Fraternities and sororities are fraternal social organizations for undergraduate students. In Latin, the term refers mainly to such organizations at colleges and universities in the United States, although it is also applied to analogous European groups also known as corporations...
.
Two key figures in establishing the LDSSA were W. Rolfe Kerr
W. Rolfe Kerr
William Rolfe Kerr is the president of the Logan Utah Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
and Elaine A. Cannon
Elaine A. Cannon
Elaine Anderson Cannon was the eighth general president of the Young Women organization of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1978 to 1984. Cannon has been a writer and an editor and is the author of over 50 books.-Biography:...
.
External links
- Institute finder : find an Institute of Religion and a local chapter of the LDSSA