NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY 

National Honor Society is a service organization that focusses on contributing to the community by serving as peer tutors in all subject areas, and carrying out varied service projects throughout the Milton area.  We work in collusion with North Fulton Community Charities to complete donation drives, and to provide those around our community with the items they would otherwise be unable to come across.  As stated on the national NHS website, "The National Honor Society (NHS) is the nation's premier organization established to recognize outstanding high school students. More than just an honor roll, NHS serves to recognize those students who have demonstrated excellence in the areas of scholarship, leadership, service, and character."

Selection Process:

ARTICLE IX: SELECTION OF MEMBERS

Section 1. To be eligible for membership the candidate must be a member of those classes (junior, senior) designated as eligible in the chapter bylaws. (Freshmen [ninth graders] and sophomores [tenth graders] are not eligible.)  Candidates must have been in attendance at the school the equivalent of one semester.

Section 2. The minimum standard for scholarship shall be a cumulative scholastic average of at least 92 percent, A, or the equivalent standard of excellence. Candidates shall then be evaluated on the basis of service, leadership, and character.

Section 3. The selection of each member to the chapter shall be by a majority vote of the Faculty Council, after having scored each application and finding a median score those that meet and/or exceed the median will be selected for induction. Prior to notification of any candidates, the chapter adviser shall review with the principal the results of the Faculty Council's deliberations.

Section 4. A description of the selection procedure shall be published in an official school publication that is widely available in a timely fashion to all students and parents of the school. The selection procedure shall be determined by the Faculty Council and shall be consistent with the rules and regulations of NHS.

Section 5. NASSP shall not review the judgment of the Faculty Council regarding selection of individual members to local chapters.

Chapter By-Laws:

1.       Article I: Name

The name of this organization shall be the Milton High School National Honor Society

2.       Article II: Purpose

The purpose of the Milton High School Chapter of the National Honor Society is to create enthusiasm for scholarship, stimulate a desire to render service, promote leadership, and develop the character of its members.

3.       Article III: Role of the Principal

1. Section 1: The Milton High School Chapter of the National Honor Society shall operate under the authority of the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP).
2. Section2: The principal shall reserve the right to approve all activities and decisions of the chapter.  The principal shall also appoint a member of the faculty as chapter advisor and a Faculty Selection Committee composed of five members of the school faculty.  Both the chapter advisor and members of the Faculty Selection Committee may serve consecutive terms.  The principal shall also hear appeals in cases of non-selection of candidates, and appeals concerning the disciplining or dismissal of members.

4.       Article IV: Definition of Membership

The membership of the Milton High School chapter of the Nation Honor Society shall be composed of juniors and seniors who have fulfilled the academic requirements of the Milton High School chapter of the National Honor Society and who have successfully demonstrated that their leadership, service, and character meet the criteria of the National Honor Society.  That evaluation shall be determined by the Faculty Selection Committee.  Once selected for induction, all new member must pay $25 dues for events, supplies, and activities within the National Honor Society, and all Senior members must pay their $25 dues before they are eligible to receive their stole and/or cords.

5.       Article V: Selection of Members

1. Section 1: All juniors who have attended at least one full year at Milton High School by the end of the second semester of their sophomore year, have taken two honors level (or higher) courses at Milton, and who have a cumulative GPA of 92 or higher in the spring of their sophomore year will be invited to apply for membership.
2. Section 2: Interested candidates will complete forms and an essay concerning their character and leadership and service activities to demonstrate that they exemplify the characteristics of a member of the National Honor Society.
3. Section 3: The Faculty Committee will review the applications and assign a numerical value to the examples provided by the applicants.  Applicants will also receive a score for their scholarship based upon a 92 GPA overall average.
4. Section 4: All acceptances will be tentative pending the issuance of the report card at the end of the student's junior year: a student must have a cumulative GPA of 92 by the end of his or her sophomore year in order to be inducted into the chapter.
5. Section 5: Notification of acceptances will be sent to students before the start of the following school year, usually by the middle of October.
6. Section 6: Candidates become members when inducted at a special ceremony in the fall of their junior (or senior) year.

6.       Article VI: Meetings

There will be at least one general membership meeting every month.  Subsequent general membership meetings will be scheduled on an "as needed" basis.  Meeting dates and times will be announced and posted.  It is the responsibility of the students to learn of meeting times and dates and to attend them on time.

7.       Article VII: Duties and Responsibilities

1. Section 1: The Officers
1. President of the chapter and a Vice President: Both will be elected from the student membership at the earliest possible time following the selection process.
   
2. President will conduct any chapter meetings and be responsible for any special activities and fund raising by the chapter.  The President is also responsible for communicating information concerning meetings and other issues to the membership
   
3. The President and the Vice President will be jointly responsible for:
   
1. Organizing the chapter's group service activities and making sure those students are signed up to perform the group service projects.
   
2. Submitting the completed monthly sign-up sheet to the chapter advisor in advance of the service to be rendered.
   
3. Keeping records of that service, so it is clear which members participated on which days.  Those records must always be up to date and ready for review by the chapter advisor.
   
4. The Vice President is responsible for recording minutes of any meetings and for publishing those minutes to the membership on the chapter website.
   
5. The Secretary, Treasurer, and Attendance Officer will be elected when the President and Vice President are elected. Their duties will be to assist in all activities and to monitor attendance and coordinate new service projects.
   
2. Section 2: The Advisor.  The chapter advisor will be responsible for the direct, day-to-day supervision of the chapter and will act as liaison for the chapter with the faculty, administration, students, and community.  The advisor shall maintain files on member ship, chapter history, activities, and financial transactions.  The advisor shall send the annual report to the national office.  The advisor shall periodically review each member for compliance with honor society standards and obligations and help the chapter officers understand and carry out their duties.  Finally, the advisor shall be an ex-officio, non-voting member of the selection committee.
   
3. Section 3: Members.  To remain in good standing, members must maintain a cumulative GPA of 92 or higher, be a strong participant in the chapter's tutoring program, and to complete in a timely fashion sixty hours of approved and verified service (See Service Hours created by officers).  Students are also required to honor the terms of their ethical pledge.  Students, who cheat, lie, act dishonestly, plagiarize, fail to comply with the chapter's membership requirements and/or deadlines, violate Milton High School's student code of behavior, or break the law outside of school is subject to disciplinary proceedings by the Faculty Selection Committee pursuant to chapter by-laws.

8.       Article VIII: Election and Removal of Officers

1. Section 1: Officers shall be elected by a simple majority vote by the membership at the April meeting each year. 
   
2. Section 2: Should the chapter advisor determine that an officer is neglecting his or her duties to the detriment of the chapter, the advisor will warn the officer of the problem and give the officer an opportunity to improve.  If there is no improvement or the improvement is negligible, the chapter advisor will instruct the officer to leave that office.  A chapter meeting will be called to elect another student to replace the dismissed officer.

9.       Article IX: Conducting Meetings

Meetings will be conducted according to Robert's Rules of Order.

10.    Article X: Ratifying the Bylaws

Bylaws will be ratified by the Faculty Selection Committee and approved by the school administration.  Such ratification will be deemed binding on subsequent members, subject to future amendments.

11.   Article XI: Amending the Bylaws

1. Section 1: Any amendment should be presented to the chapter and to the Faculty Selection Committee one month before a vote on that amendment takes place.
   
2. Section 2: An amendment must have the support of at least five members before it can be brought to the attention of the membership and the Faculty Selection Committee.
   
3. Section 3: Revisions to the procedures for selection, disciplining, and dismissal of members can only be changed by the Faculty Selection Committee.
   
4. Section 4: A two-thirds majority vote from the membership shall be required for an amendment to pass.  This does not apply to revisions to the procedures for selection, disciplining, and dismissal of members, which can only be changed by the Faculty Selection Committee.

12.   Article XII: Disciplining and Dismissing Members

1. Section 1: Membership in Milton High School's chapter of the National Honor Society is a privilege, not a right, and students who join the chapter are by that action accepting the responsibilities of maintaining their membership in good standing.
   
2. Section 2: Obligations of members in good standing of Milton High School's chapter of the National Honor Society include but are not limited to:
   
1. Acting in good character, as defined by the ethical pledge taken by all members prior to join Milton High School's chapter of the National Honor Society.  Students, who cheat, lie, act dishonestly, plagiarize, fail to comply with the chapter's membership requirements and/or deadlines, violate Milton Hight School's student code of behavior, or break the law outside of school is subject to disciplinary proceedings by the Faculty Selection Committee pursuant of chapter bylaws.  Any action deemed to be unethical and/or illegal may also be considered in this context, whether committed in or out of school;
   
2. Maintaining a strong academic standing, defined here as at least a 92 cumulative average throughout the school year;
   
3. Fulfilling all service obligations in a timely and complete manner, which includes (but is not limited to) donating an equitable number of service hours to the chapter's tutoring project and donating approved additional hours of time to an individual service project according to the schedule set by the chapter advisor and done in compliance with the chapter's requirements (see Service Hours);
   
4. Attending all meetings and arriving at those meetings on time;
   
5. Participating in any fund raising project voted on by the chapter.
   
3. Section 3: Students are liable for discipline measures and/or dismissal if they fail to meet their obligations as members of Milton High School's chapter of the National Honor Society.  If a student is dismissed, that student will not, among other things, be recognized as an honor student at graduation.
   
4. Section 4: A student who appears to no longer meet the standards of Milton High School's chapter of the National Honor Society will receive at least one week's written notice of a hearing before the Faculty Selection Committed to determine the appropriate action to be taken, including but not limited to dismissal from the honor society.  The Faculty Selection Committee may obtain information concerning a student's failure to comply with chapter standards through a variety of sources, including but not limited to disciplinary reports filed by members of Milton High School's faculty and/or administration.  Notice of the hearing will be sent to the student via certified mail.
   
5. Section 5: If a student appears to no longer meet the standards of Milton High School's chapter of the National Honor Society at a point in the school year when providing that student with a week's notice of a hearing before the Faculty Selection Committee would render the issue of dismissal or discipline moot (for example, if an issue arises shortly before graduation), the student has two choices.  The student may either consent to a hearing with potentially much less notice or the student can agree to march in graduation without being designated as a member of the honor society.
   
6. Section 6: The student may be present for the Faculty Selection Committee hearing, at which time the student may present his or her explanation of mitigating circumstances and/or other information which the student deems relevant to the committee's consideration of his or her situation.  The student's behavior at the hearing is subject to reasonable rules of conduct which may be established by the Faculty Selection Committee.
   
7. Section 7: Neither the student, either one of his or her parents, legal guardians, nor any legal representative of the student is entitled to be present during the Faculty Selection Committee's deliberations after the hearing is concluded.
   
8. Section 8: After the hearing is concluded, the Faculty Selection Committee will carefully and deliberately review all of the information available to it to determine whether or not the student has violated the ethical pledge and/or failed to comply with the membership requirements of Milton High School's chapter of the National Honor Society.  A student's failure to comply with membership requirements can include but is not limited to:
   
1. failing to follow the requirements for getting service hour approved (see Forms and Important Dates), 
   
2. failing to perform required and approved service hours in a timely fashion,
   
3. failing to submit verification of approved service hours in a timely and approved fashion (see Forms and Important Dates),
   
4. failing to attend any chapter meeting or being late for same.
   
9. Section 9: The Faculty Selection Committee will determine what sanction(s), if any, are appropriate in light of all of the information before it.  The Faculty Selection Committee may, if that committee deems it appropriate, allow the student to perform restitution on a probationary basis such that the student may cure the offense and return to having membership in good standing.  The Faculty Selection Committee may also deprive the student of some of the benefits of membership in good standing.  In all such cases, if the student does not comply with the Faculty Selection Committee's decisions in all respects, the student automatically forfeits his or her membership in Milton High School's chapter of the National Honor Society without the necessity of a second hearing.  The Faculty Selection Committee may also determine that the student's actions are such that the student can not remain in the honor society.  Such a final determination will only be reached through a unanimous vote of the Faculty Selection Committee.  In all cases, discussions and balloting by the Faculty Selection Committee will remain confidential.
   
10. Section 10: Written notice of dismissal will first be sent to the school principal.  Written notice will then  be sent to the student and to his or her parent(s) or legal guardian(s).
    
11. Section 11: If the student is dismissed, he or she may appeal the decision to the school principal and thereafter follow the same rules and procedures as for other district disciplinary actions.
    
12. Section 12: Once a dismissal has been finalized, a student will not be reconsidered for readmission to the honor society.

13.   Article XIII: Membership Privileges

1. Honor society members in good standing will be recognized publicly at the official graduation ceremony of Milton High School.
   
2. Honor society members in good standing will be allowed to claim membership to the society on all college applications.

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Advisor:

Carolyn Flis Flis@fultonschools.org