National Honor Society Path to Membership Updated January 23, 2019

What is National Honor Society? National Honor Society (NHS) is a national student leadership and service organization that welcomes exceptional students who commit to service, leadership, scholarship and who do so with an upstanding (honorable) character. There are National Honor Society chapters in high schools all over the country. This is a prestigious accomplishment and should be viewed as one of the end-game goals of exceptional students. The National Honor Society is built on 4 pillars: Scholarship, Leadership, Character, and Service.

The 4 Pillars defined Scholarship: A National Honor Society Student values his or her education and sees the merit in applying him/herself in all academic endeavors. He or she wishes not only to understand the material presented in various classes, but also to be challenged intellectually while maintaining a high level of achievement. This is the first requirement a potential member must meet in order to be considered for induction to National Honor Society. In the Musselman High School chapter, a 3.5 cumulative GPA is the first criteria to be invited to apply for National Honor Society. Service: Service is something done to benefit others or the greater community (within and outside of the school). This is voluntary and is not rewarded monetarily. This is also something done with enthusiasm and kindness. A National Honor Society Member receives the benefit of knowing his or her contributions has bettered the greater community and does not begrudge the time or efforts required to see the service project’s success.

The 4 Pillars defined Character: A National Honor Society member does not worry that adhering to a certain standard may cause him or her to lose face in front of his peers. They do not take actions that make them appear cool or more easily accepted by their peers whose values do not align with those of National Honor Society. As John Wooden wisely stated, “Character is what a person does when no one is looking.” Leadership: students who have good leadership will spearhead projects, ask questions, take on leadership roles, set positive examples, promote their organizations (and school and community) in a positive manner. Leaders want to work with others and want to give back. Leaders are not people who simply want to receive acclaim or accolades for their accomplishments.

What is the benefit of becoming a National Honor Society member? You will be viewed as an exceptional individual who values the four pillars. Imagine a glowing recommendation letter written by an adult who commands a tremendous amount of respect. That is the level of recommendation given to an individual who has been inducted into our chapter of National Honor Society. This membership automatically states that you are an upstanding citizen who wants to make a positive contribution to your community while maintaining the highest level of character. When a résumé states that you are a member of National Honor Society, a potential employer should know that they are going to be receiving a quality employee that will be an asset to their company. When you are a National Honor Society member, you will be able to show this accomplishment when applying for any scholarships and you will be eligible to apply for the National Honor Society scholarship specifically.

National Honor Society is not for every student, so the process for being accepted and inducted is rigorous.

When are you eligible to become a National Honor Society (NHS) member? At Musselman High School, you are eligible to join NHS when you are in the second semester of your junior year. If you do not qualify your junior year, you are eligible again the second semester of your senior year.

Eligibility You will be sent a postcard invitation to attend an informational meeting to prepare for membership in NHS. A letter will also be mailed to your home regarding this informational meeting. This postcard invitation and letter home is generally sent around the 3rd or 4th week of January depending on when information is made available to the NHS Advisor.

What is the first criteria that needs to be met to become a NHS member? The Musselman Chapter of NHS requires an initial CUMULATIVE GPA of 3.5 measured over the course of your high school career for a standard diploma. You must be a student that attends Musselman High School on a daily basis to be accepted into NHS. (i.e.-not homebound, home school, or any other OSE)

What is the first criteria that needs to be met to become a NHS member? If you have met this first criteria, then you will receive an invitation to an informational meeting.

The application

Next step toward membership… The application! At the informational meeting, the NHS Advisors will go through the application that needs to be completed to apply for membership.

Where can you find this application? This application will be available on the Musselman High School homepage at www.applemen.org Locate the application under Parent and Student Resources/Student Resources/National Honor Society

Note that a picture is required on the application Note that a picture is required on the application. This is required so that faculty council members will be sure to associate the application with the correct candidate. Section I

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Note that this section does require an adult sponsor signature to be valid. Section VII

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The application Application MUST be typed, printed, and given to NHS Advisor. Application will be stamped with a date and time that it is received by the Advisor.  Application deadline is observed and is taken into account by faculty council when candidate membership decision is made. Information on the application should not be repetitive across sections.

The timeline

Timeline See the website for the current NHS Induction timeline A timeline of dates will be made available during every induction period. See the website for the current NHS Induction timeline

Faculty Recommend/Not Recommend All faculty members are included in the candidate selection process Faculty is given a time period to be able to recommend or not recommend a student for membership

Candidate Selection Faculty council for NHS will meet to decide on the selection of candidates The school Principal will have final decision making authority on all selections Once selections are made, candidates will be notified by a letter mailed to their home address on file at the school

Acceptance of membership Once you receive your letter of acceptance, it is your responsibility to pay the induction fee to the NHS Advisor. This induction fee payment is acceptance of your membership.

Induction Fees 2019 fees are as follows: The Musselman Chapter of NHS does charge each selected member an induction fee to cover the cost of certificate, pin, cord, and stole 2019 fees are as follows: Juniors-$35.00 Seniors-$50.00 Induction fee must be received by NHS Advisor by deadline prior to inductions.

This is a tradition at Musselman High School . NHS Pinning Candidates to be inducted will be “pinned” during school a few days prior to the induction ceremony. This pin is a ribbon and is to be worn each day up until the induction ceremony This is a tradition at Musselman High School .

Induction Ceremony This formal ceremony is held before Spring Break annually. Seniors should wear graduation attire along with their gown (no cap).  Junior females are to wear white dresses and white dress shoes (no flip flops).  Junior males should wear black pants, white dress shirt, black tie, and black shoes. A member of the yearbook staff will take photos during this ceremony. Parents/Guardians are invited to pin their NHS student.

Induction and Cording Ceremony 2019 Induction and Cording Ceremony is scheduled for FRIDAY, APRIL 12 at 12:00 PM in the auditorium

NHS Advisors Mrs. Beddow may be contacted at Lbeddow@k12.wv.us Ms. Brooks may be contacted at jennifer.m.brooks@k12.wv.us Mrs. Beddow and Ms. Brooks are the Advisors and are here to help students through the application process. The Advisors facilitate candidate selection but are not voting members of faculty council.