National Honor Society (NHS) is an organization for high school students in the United States implemented at individual schools through the formations of chapters. NHS is a program students qualify for based on academic achievement and extracurricular involvement. Once inducted into the chapter, students spend the rest of their time in NHS embarking on a variety of short and long term services projects to improve society on community and school levels. 

West End Secondary School’s first Induction Ceremony for the founding chapter members was held in February 2020, with faculty member Molly Porcher as the leader for this club. Under the supervision of Molly, service projects will be led by NHS officers and carried out by the club as a whole. WESS’s newly elected NHS officers are Marcus Hopper, Nicholas Badagliacca, Malek Elashry, Jasmine Sanchez, and Kiki Dattoma. 

Members of the NHS can run for positions by completing a brief application and delivering a speech. The election results for officers in the current chapter were announced to the club on October 29, 2020. All current officers are juniors inducted into NHS in February. 

Marcus Hopper won the vote to become the founding president of NHS at WESS for the 2020 – 2021 school year. Marcus intends for the NHS to tackle sensitive issues about racial inequality and create awareness around the WESS community. Furthermore, he plans to establish a platform for speaking about and participating in social justice movements collaboratively with the organization Teens Take Charge. Marcus concluded the interview by saying, “let’s have an awesome year!”

Nicholas Badagliacca was elected for the position of vice president this term, with meaningful ideas to help community members that have been negatively impacted by COVID-19. Nicholas would like to aid students who are struggling with remote academic studies and plans to organize fundraisers for families threatened financially due to the pandemic. Nicholas enjoys participating in NHS because it provides an opportunity for him to enrich our community, in and out of WESS. 

Jasmine Sanchez, the chosen secretary for this year’s term, expressed to me some of her intentions as an NHS officer. Jasmine is aiming to increase involvement from all members of NHS and the rest of the student body by making information and updates on NHS initiatives more accessible.  

National Honor Society is a great way for students to come together and enrich their knowledge outside of the classroom through service projects. Molly, WESS’s college counselor and NHS facilitator, shares that students should apply for NHS if they are interested in authentic ways to make positive changes in their community. National Honor Society is more than just an acknowledgement of academic and extracurricular achievements, it further prompts students to engage in and explore current issues that deserve to be addressed. When Molly was asked what she thinks members gain from their experience in NHS, she detailed the ways in which students will have the chance to collaborate with others in projects that will result in significant contributions to their community.

National Honor Society is an amazing organization and opportunity for students to explore crucial topics in our world beyond core classes. Once they reach their sophomore year, students will have the option to apply for NHS. Further information on requirements and the application process will be sent around Thanksgiving, and the application opens at the beginning of December. NHS members are looking forward to a great year of service learning and welcoming new students later this year into the chapter!