Four Elmira College Students Inducted Into Triota Honor Society

From left to right: Emma Henault ’25, Tia Ruggiero ’26, Hazel Dahlquist ’25, Taylor Parsons ’25

The Elmira College Chapter of Iota Iota Iota (or Triota), the National Women's Honor Society, recently held its annual induction ceremony. Triota strives to maintain the feminist values central to Women's and Gender Studies: egalitarianism, inclusiveness, and a celebration of the diversity of women's experiences.

This year's inductees were:

• Emma Henault ’25

• Tia Ruggiero ’26

• Taylor Parsons ’25

• Hazel Dahlquist ’25

Each year, the inductees are entrusted with a feminist mission, and the Triota goddesses Ishtar, Inanna, and Isis “endow” each inductee with the power to be a dedicated foe of evil, defender of the weak, and a champion of truth and justice. The inductees pledge to stand up for feminist values and work for the equality and empowerment of all women.

The featured speaker for the 2025 induction ceremony was Dr. Annaliese Hoehling, Assistant Professor of English and Director of the Academic Writing Program at Elmira College.

In her keynote address, Hoehling turned to Virginia Woolf’s “Three Guineas,” where Woolf raised the idea of “unreal loyalties,” and challenged the inductees to consider carefully to whom they give their loyalty.

“Because the induction process involves an oath, I thought it fitting to reflect on what it means to swear allegiance to a set of ideas or an institution,” explained Hoehling. “Woolf's 1938 manifesto explores the tensions for some groups expected to be "loyal" to institutions or traditions that do not actually serve their values or ethics --- and that might actually work against them. I gave the inductees and the attendees some of Woolf's words to reflect on and asked them to consider their loyalties in terms of their new oath: who and what are worthy of their loyalty?”