Although it is commendable that Mira Costa’s chapter of the National Honor Society grants membership to exceptional students on campus, the organization should be utilized as an avenue for significant change rather than simply for a title.
NHS is a national organization that’s dedicated to recognizing outstanding high school students for their academic, extracurricular and service achievements. Sophomores and juniors can apply for membership at the end of the school year, and, if accepted, they will receive a certification letter in the summer. However, at Costa, students have been known for solely joining the organization due to its title, rather than the true purpose of the club.
Throughout the school year, NHS students form committees and organize chapter projects. Committees, comprised of a committee head and committee members, plan and run at least one service project each year. The projects, which range from bake sales to restaurant fundraisers, are designed to help raise money for a charity, organization or special cause.
While the charitable efforts of these committees are commendable, requiring committees to be more active could help push them to reach their full potential, therefore creating more widespread, meaningful and lasting results.
According to NHS adviser Stacy Cabrera, NHS requires and values academics, character, leadership and service from each of its members. Yet, members must complete only 10 service hours each school year, and just one of the 10 hours must be earned through work on an NHS-affiliated project, to maintain their NHS status.
As stated by Cabrera, most NHS members do more than 10 hours as it is, but NHS should still increase the amount of required total service hours and NHS hours. If this policy were to be implemented, members of NHS would, hopefully, take their involvement more seriously and participate more heavily in community service, thus giving a larger meaning to the NHS name and acting as a catalyst for positive change within the community.
Another example of remiss in the NHS organization is the fact that juniors who have been accepted into the society currently do not have to reapply for membership in their senior year of high school. The lack of a formal renewal process each year reinforces the neglectful attitude that the Costa NHS chapter has adopted the NHS organization.
For an application free renewal of membership, students must maintain an unweighted GPA of 3.6, pay NHS dues and meet or exceed the number of required hours. However, it would be more beneficial for NHS leaders to also verify that members are sustaining the same or higher levels of excellence in academic, character, leadership and service that granted the students membership originally.
According to Cabrera, she is looking to implement a reapplication process in addition to instituting warnings and probationary status to those who do not uphold NHS standards next year. This will uphold the organization’s validity as a platform for student recognition and ensure that all members are reaching the organization’s requirements.
With its current systems, NHS is failing to harness its potential for positive change. If greater involvement through committees and service hours along with more stringent regulation system were implemented, NHS could make an even greater impact on Costa students and the community.
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