National Honor Society Constitution
Eligibility:
Students in grades 10, 11, and 12 with a cumulative GPA of 93% or better at the end of the semester prior to selection will be eligible to apply for membership. This information will be provided to the chapter adviser by the guidance office.
Students must be in attendance at North Bend Central for at least one semester to be eligible for membership consideration.
Upon meeting the grade level, enrollment, and GPA standards, candidates shall then be considered based on their service, leadership, and character.
Transfer Students: An NHS member who transfers from another school and brings a letter from the principal or chapter adviser to the NBC chapter adviser shall be accepted automatically as a member in the NBC chapter. Transfer members must meet the NBC chapter’s standards within one semester in order to retain membership.
Selection Process:
The selection process will begin mid-October with applications due within two weeks. New members will be selected and notified by mid-November. New members will then be invited to meetings and be included in service projects throughout the year until their initiation in the spring.
Procedure:
Eligible candidates will be invited (via email) to a mandatory eligibility meeting.
Following the eligibility meeting, students will receive an email with a link to the application materials (resume, character paragraph). The due date for these materials will be included on the document. No paper or late submissions will be accepted.
Each faculty member will be given a list of eligible students who have submitted application materials. Teachers are asked to address possible concerns regarding students and their candidacy as well as provide positive feedback. This information will be compiled by the chapter advisor and presented to the Faculty Council.
The Faculty Council will meet and examine the candidates’ materials and review the staff feedback. Candidates shall be evaluated on the basis of service, leadership, and character.
The selection of each member to the chapter shall be by a majority vote of the Faculty Council.
Prior to notification of any candidates, the chapter adviser shall review with the principal the results of the Faculty Council’s deliberations.
Appeals:
Membership selection is not subject to appeal. All decisions are final and confidential in nature.
All Faculty Council discussions are confidential.
Chapters are not obligated to share information concerning specific students not selected for membership in National Honor Society. The advisor or principal may listen to concerns from students or parents. Following such discussions, if the advisor or principal believes a technical error was made, the Faculty Council may be asked to reconvene to review the situation. Technical errors might include the inadvertent omission of a name from the list of eligible students. In the absence of specific evidence to the contrary, however, the principal must assume that the members of the Faculty Council are exercising their discretion in a legitimate manner.
NASSP (National Association of Secondary School Principals) shall not review the judgment of the Faculty Council regarding selection of individual members to local chapters.
Discipline/Dismissal:
Any member who falls below the standards of scholarship, service, leadership, or character may be considered for disciplinary action or dismissal from the North Bend Central chapter of the National Honor Society.
GPA: If a member’s cumulative GPA falls below 93%, they will be given a written warning and a reasonable time period for improvement (generally one semester). If the cumulative GPA remains below standard at the end of the warning period the student will be subject to further disciplinary action by the faculty council which may include consideration of dismissal from the chapter.
Obligations/Service: lf a member fails to perform any of the published obligations of membership, he or she will be given a written warning and a time period for improvement. If the obligation remains unmet at the end of the warning period, the student will be subject to further disciplinary action by the Faculty Council, which may include dismissal from the chapter.
School Conduct Code: Members who violate the school conduct code will be subject to disciplinary measures. Behaviors that violate the school conduct code include but are not limited to the following:
Use of profanity
Failure to comply
Unexcused absences
Truancy
Excessive tardiness
Cheating (observed or reported by a teacher)
In-school or out-of-school suspension
A conference may be requested by either party (faculty council or student/parent). If the member is involved in another violation of the school conduct code, the member may be considered for further disciplinary action or dismissal.
First Offense:
Member will receive a written warning from the chapter adviser stating the offense.
Second Offense:
Member will receive written notification that he/she is subject to dismissal from the organization for a second offense at any time during their high school tenure.
The member will be given the opportunity to respond to the charge(s) against them at a hearing before the faculty council prior to any vote on dismissal (in accordance with due process identified in Article X of the NHS National Constitution). The member has the opportunity to present their defense either in person or via a written statement presented in lieu of the face-to-face hearing. Parents may attend the hearing, but the member is expected to present their case before the council.
For purposes of dismissal, a majority vote of the faculty council is required.
The results of the faculty council vote will be presented to the principal for review, and then stated in a letter sent to the student and parents.
The member will be notified in writing of the council’s final decision within seven school days.
A member who has been dismissed may appeal the decision of the Faculty Council to the principal under the same rules for disciplinary appeals in the school district.
In lieu of dismissal, the faculty council may impose disciplinary sanctions upon a member as deemed appropriate.
NASSP shall hear no appeals in dismissal cases.
Violations that will lead to immediate consideration of dismissal include the following:
Found guilty or admitting to a felony
Expulsion
Destruction of property
Possession of or use of alcohol or a controlled substance on or off school grounds (either admits or is found guilty of)
Using tobacco or vaping products of any kind on of off school grounds (observed by school personnel)
Found guilty of a misdemeanor (excluding traffic violations)
Service:
Members are required to contribute at least 20 hours/year to community service endeavors.
(The service “year” will run from May 1 - April 30.) Service hours must be earned through participation in both chapter and individual service projects. Verification forms must be submitted by April 30 in order to remain in good standing and be eligible for the privileges of membership. (Copy of Service Document)
Chapter Service Project:
Each chapter shall determine one or more service projects for each year.
All members shall regularly participate in these projects.
These projects shall have the following characteristics:
fulfill a need within the school or community
have the support of the administration and the faculty
be appropriate and educationally defensible
be well planned, organized, and executed
Individual Service Project:
Each member shall have the responsibility of choosing and participating in an individual service project that reflects their particular talents and interests. This is in addition to the chapter projects to which all members contribute.
NHS Service documentation form: (Google Doc linked here)