National Honor Society

SELECTION PROCESS
Membership in the National Honor Society is an honor extended by the faculty of Gouverneur Central School. To be eligible a candidate must be found worthy in four areas of merit: Scholarship, Leadership, Service and Character. To be eligible for membership consideration a candidate must have a cumulative average of ninety (90). Although a person may have a high scholastic average, this does not guarantee membership.

Each potential member is sent a letter requesting that he/she meet with the advisor and pick up a questionnaire. This form asks the prospective member to list all activities, jobs, volunteer work, sports, awards and honors. A candidate must demonstrate that he/she has been involve din service projects in and out of school. A potential member must also demonstrate leadership by having been elected to an office, or by having demonstrated potential for the same.

A form is also circulated to the faculty which is asked to comment positively or negatively on those students with whom they have had contact.

Character guidelines are as follows:
Integrity - No record of cheating or intentional dishonesty.
Positive Behavior - No record of skipping classes or of knowlingly violating any school regulation. The student consistently promotes positive attitude and behavior.
Cooperation - Willing to assist classmates and faculty members. No record of insubordination or poor conduct at school functions.
Ethics - Wants to do the "right" thing in most situations.

All of this information is collected and presented to the five-member faculty council for review. The decision of the faculty council is final.

Points for Leadership and Service:
A students must have a combined total of 18 points in leadership and service to be considered eligible for membership in the honor society.

Leadership	Pts.	Service	Pts
President of a class or recognized organization	5	Member of a service organization ex. Scouts	2
Vice President	3	Active member of a club, ex. Speech (any activity that meets after school)	2
Secretary	3	Member of an action committee	2
Treasurer	3	Member of a team sport	2
Captain of a Team	3	Recognition at a local level	3
Head Cheerleader	3	Recogniton at the State or National Level	4
Editor of the Yearbook	5	Paid employment (up to 10 hrs per week)	2
Lead Role in a Musical	3	Paid employment (over 10 hrs per week)	4
NYSSMA Solo	2	Volunteer work	2

Points accrue from the beginning of the ninth grade. Ex. Participation in stage band for three years is equal to 6 points. A recognized organization is any on or off campus organization approved by the school, State or Federal agency. An action committee includes such things as a concession stand, rose sale, prom, winter festival, etc. It is a committee around a special one or two day event. Advisor, coach or employer signature is necessary. The signature of the principal may be used in certain situations.