Aurigan Chapter of the National Honor Society:
NHS membership is by selection-only at the school level. The national office of NHS does not participate in any aspect of individual membership selection. Guidelines for membership are set by each school based on the requirements in the NHS Constitution.
Selection Process:
Students must have at least a 90 average to be invited to apply to the Aurigan Chapter of the National Honor Society. Tenth graders must have taken at least two honors courses, and eleventh and twelfth graders must have taken at least three advanced level courses in order to be eligible for membership.
Advanced level courses include honors and AP courses, Languages IV and V, Trigonometry, Calculus, and the Science Research Topic course.
NHS candidates must demonstrate leadership, character, and service.**
Application Process:
If a student wishes to apply for membership to the National Honor Society, they will need to submit an application to the adviser consisting of
Two letters of recommendation.
A 300-word letter of application outlining your reasons for wanting to join NHS. In this letter, ensure that you talk about your personal commitment to the pillars of NHS (academics, leadership, service, and character) – be specific. This letter must be typed.
Two signed (scanned) letters of reference attesting to your character and leadership experience. *Your references may send their letter directly to me if they insist on direct contact with me. NHS adviser & members of the Honor Council cannot write letters of reference.
Completed worksheets (attached) outlining your service history (your efforts as a volunteer in helping others in your community) and your leadership experience (what you have done as a leader of others). This document must be typed.
Staff Survey
Once the candidates have submitted their applications, a survey is sent to the staff members at Mt. Everett in an effort to help quantify the evaluation process. In addition, the survey helps because the advisory council members may not have had a chance to work with each of the candidates. The survey aims to have the entire faculty evaluate the students applying to the National Honor Society from their experience with the student. The survey is anonymous to all but the adviser and the school principal.
Evaluation
Once the applications are submitted and meet all the requirements, a shared drive is created for the school principal and the advisory council to review and evaluate. The applications are usually available for the council to review for two weeks. Then a meeting is held to discuss and vote on the student candidates. All available written material is used in the evaluation process. That includes, but is not limited to, the student’s letters of recommendation, the anonymous survey results, the student’s transcripts and the student’s disciplinary records.
Students are evaluated on scholarship, leadership, character and service - the four pillars of the National Honor Society.
The following is from the NHS Handbook which guides the council’s decision making process at Mt. Everett and at many NHS chapters across the country.
Leadership
The leadership criterion is considered highly important for membership selection. A faculty council may wish to interpret leadership in terms of number of offices a student has held in school or community organizations; however, it is important to recognize that leadership also exists outside elected positions. This includes positions of responsibility within the classroom as well as in other activities offered on campus, such as athletic team captains, section leaders in band and chorus, and committee chairs in student groups. Leadership roles in both the school and community may be considered, provided they can be verified. Chapters are encouraged to consider a specific, objective standard for the leadership criterion. Such standards could include a specific number of leadership experiences required for all candidates or other indicators of leadership experience. Leadership can be quantified by the candidate through a candidate information form; the quality or effectiveness of those leadership experiences can be assessed using teacher recommendations or faculty input forms submitted with professional comments by the staff of the school. (See also the subsection below on using supplemental forms.) An example of such an objective standard could read, “To meet the leadership criterion for NHS, a student must name three (3) leadership roles at school or in the community achieved since the ninth grade [in a 9–12 school] and indicate the roles and the name of the adult who supervised each of these activities on the candidate information form. More than three roles may be listed, but there must be three verifiable listings to be selected to our chapter.” If a faculty council decides upon such an objective standard, it will prove helpful to have available the professional rationale used in developing the standard, particularly when introducing the standard to the principal for review. The rationale for this or any other aspect of the selection process should be available upon request to any individual. Chapters can consider the following descriptors as they develop their local definition and standard for leadership. This list is for consideration and should not be thought of as a checklist for this criterion. A student who exercises leadership: • Is resourceful in proposing new problems, applying principles, and making suggestions • Demonstrates initiative in promoting school activities • Exercises positive influence on peers in upholding school ideals and spirit • Contributes ideas that improve the civic life of the school • Is able to delegate responsibilities • Inspires positive behavior in others • Demonstrates academic initiative selection procedures 38 • Successfully holds school offices or positions of responsibility; conducts business effectively and efficiently; demonstrates reliability and dependability • Is a leader in the classroom, at work, or in other school or community activities • Is dependable in any responsibility accepted
Service
Service is generally considered to be those actions undertaken by the student that are done with or on behalf of others without any direct financial or material compensation. In considering service, the contributions each candidate has made to school and community can be reviewed. All chapters are strongly encouraged to develop and use an objective standard for service based on either a specific number of projects or a specific quantity of hours. For example, “To be selected as a member of our chapter, a candidate must demonstrate on their candidate information form the completion of 10 hours of service undertaken at school or in the community since the start of ninth grade [in a 9–12 school].” A quantity of service, as noted in the selection process description developed by the faculty council after consultation with staff and students, should be determined as a fair and reasonable quantity of service to require. All such service references by candidates should include verification by an adult supervisor of the activity under consideration. (Refer to the sample candidate information form in the Chapter Management Tools found at the end of this chapter.) It is advantageous both for the faculty council and for students considering membership to have such an objective standard in place for the chapter. Chapters can consider the following descriptors as they develop their local definition and standard for service. This list is for consideration only and should not be thought of as a checklist for this criterion. The student who serves: • Volunteers and provides dependable and well-organized assistance, and is willing to make sacrifices to offer assistance • Works well with others and is willing to take on difficult or inconspicuous responsibilities • Enthusiastically renders any requested service to the school • Is willing to represent the class or school in interclass and interscholastic competition • Does committee and staff work without complaint • Participates in some activity outside of school, for example, Girl Scouts; Boy Scouts; religious groups; volunteer services for the elderly, poor, or disadvantaged. • Mentors in the community or students at other schools • Shows courtesy by assisting visitors, teachers, and students
Character
The faculty council should consider the positive as well as the negative aspects of each candidate’s character. All judgments in this and other selection criteria should be free of speculation, rumor, or hearsay. National Honor Society is a member of the Character Counts!™ Coalition and supports and recommends the use of a multifaceted definition of character known as the Six Pillars of Character. A person of character demonstrates the following six qualities: trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring, and citizenship. Schools are encouraged to take this model, modify it to meet their local needs, and utilize it frequently in the work of their chapter. (For more information on Character Counts!, see www.charactercounts.org ) Documenting Character. In considering the standards set for the local character criterion, a candidate will be able to demonstrate an outstanding record of conduct and behavior with regard to school and community rules, guidelines, and policies, or be able to demonstrate sufficient growth and improvement to compensate for previous inadequacies. A faculty council is encouraged to document, for purposes of its own decision-making or if questioned by the principal, any substandard performance in the area of the character criterion. Such documentation might include such sources as: • Administrative records of the school • Conduct/behavior grades or ratings (including comments) on report cards or progress reports • Professional records of individual faculty members (grade books, etc.) • Comments, based on professional evaluation (i.e., judgment) and action, of individual faculty members as they appear on faculty input forms It is left to the discretion of the local principal, faculty adviser, and/or faculty council as to how much of this information is to be shared with the candidate not selected for membership (or their parents). Disciplinary records. Students who have been arrested and found guilty of civil offenses or who have a chronic record of breaking school rules cannot be automatically excluded from consideration for membership. As with the scholarship criterion where a cumulative GPA is used, it is advisable to consider the whole child as found in a cumulative report of behavior while in high school. A proper regard for adolescent growth and behavior improvement is essential. selection procedures 39 Pregnancy. It should be noted that, under provisions of federal law, pregnancy—whether within or without wedlock—cannot be the basis for denial of the right to participate in any public school activity including membership in NHS. (See Appendix 2 for further information on the legal aspects of selection.) Chapters can consider the following descriptors as they develop their local definition and standard for character. This list is for consideration purposes only and should not be thought of as a checklist for this criterion. The student of character: • Consistently exemplifies positive and desirable qualities of behavior (cheerfulness, friendliness, poise, stability) • Cooperates by complying with all school policies and regulations and codes of student conduct • Takes criticism willingly and accepts recommendations graciously • Demonstrates the highest standards of honesty, academic integrity, and reliability • Regularly exhibits courtesy, concern, and respect for others • Complies with instructions and rules, and displays personal responsibility Additional character resources are found at www.nhs.us.