The National Honor Society (NHS) is one of the many organizations on campus. Here is what I learned about this program when I interviewed Sponsor Katie Spence.

Q: What is the purpose of NHS?
A: NHS is the nation’s premier organization established to recognize outstanding high school students, better the community, and help those in need. Being more than just an honor roll, NHS serves to honor those students who have demonstrated excellence in the areas of scholarship, leadership, service, and character. These four pillars are the foundation of our organization, but at the heart of everything we do is service. We want to serve our school and community in any way that we can.”

Q: How do you join?
A: NHS applications begin in late February/early March of each school year. To be eligible to apply for NHS, applicants must meet certain requirements (see below). Based on a qualifying 4.25 cumulative GPA, we send out invitations to attend an informational meeting about our organization in early February. At the meeting, we discuss who we are as an organization and how to apply. For freshmen and sophomore students, we encourage them to get active in both the school and community now so that they are ready to complete their applications in the spring semester of their sophomore year. After applications are submitted, we have an NHS Faculty Council that reviews them and makes membership decisions.

NHS Requirements:

• Must be classified as a junior or senior. (Sophomores can apply at the end of 10th grade if they have completed all course requirements.)
• Maintain at least a 4.25 cumulative GPA throughout the school year.
• Demonstrates excellence in character and leadership both on campus and in the community.
• Must complete a total of 30 service hours throughout the year. Fifteen of those hours need to come from NHS-sponsored events.
• Required to attend a leadership conference in the fall semester to develop and hone his or her leadership skills.
• All NHS members are also required to pay membership dues.

Q: What kinda projects does the NHS do?
A: We both organize our own service events, as well as help, provide volunteers for outside organizations.
On-campus, we have several peer tutoring opportunities with both the 9th-grade Learning Lab and this year’s virtual Zoom tutorials.
We pair up struggling students with NHS members who excel in that particular subject matter.