National Junior Honor Society

The application process for the St. Louis Catholic School Chapter of the National Junior Honor Society is as follows:

1. To be eligible for membership the candidate must be in 7th or 8th grade, have an overall average of at least a 90 in all classes that have a numeric grade and is a student at St. Louis Catholic School. Eligible members are given an Interest Form that will be completed by the student.  Scholarship will be determined by looking at all 6th grade grades and the 1st Trimester and the Interim grade for the 2nd Trimester of 7th grade for students in 7th For 8th grade students, scholarship will be determined by looking at all 7th grade grades and the 1st Trimester and the Interim of 2nd Trimester of 8th grade.
2. Candidates that return the form by the deadline will be given an NJHS information packet consisting of the Candidate Form, teacher evaluation forms, coach/moderator forms and the information regarding the Writing Sample.
3. There is a deadline to return all parts of this packet. Failure to meet the deadline removes the student from consideration for that year.  Students will be allowed to attend a packet review session where members of the NJHS at St. Louis that have graduated, will be available to look throughout your candidate form and offer advice on completing it.
4. Returned packets are reviewed by the Faculty Council. The Faculty Councils meets, reviews all of the packets, discusses each candidate packet and new members are chosen by a majority vote.  The Faculty Council is made up of teachers at St. Louis Catholic School.  The principal is not a member of the Faculty Council.  The NJHS Moderator is not a member of the Faculty Council.
5. Students are encouraged to be thorough in completing the Candidate Form. Decisions made by the Faculty Council are based on the information provided on the forms. Students should not assume that the Faculty Council “knows” them.  Forms should be accurate, not exaggerated, but also not too modest.
6. The main parts of the Candidate Packet are:

• • • Activity Information Form – outlining the student’s participation in areas of Leadership, Service, Student Activities, Community Activities and Recognition/Awards.
    • Three recommendation letters from teachers. Teachers will use the template that is provided.  One teacher must be the student’s current homeroom teacher.
    • Two recommendation letters from coach/moderator. Coach/moderator will use the template that is provided. 
    • Student cannot use a family member for either of these recommendations.
    • Writing Sample that is completed at school and the topic and instructions will be included in the candidate packet.

The following are offered as guidelines for the student in completing the Candidate Form:

Leadership
Students must name at least 3 leadership roles at school or in the community achieved since the start of 5th grade.  In determining what a leadership role is, remember a student that exercises leadership:

• • Is resourceful in proposing new solutions, applying principles and making suggestions.
  • Demonstrates initiative in promoting school activities
  • Exercised positive influence on peers in upholding school ideals and spirit
  • Contributes ideas that improve the civic life of the school
  • Is able to delegate responsibilities
  • Inspires positive behavior in others
  • Demonstrates academic initiative
  • Successfully holds school offices or positions of responsibility; conducts business effectively and efficiently; demonstrates reliability and dependability
  • Is a leader in the classroom, at work or in other school community activities
  • Is dependable in any responsibility accepted

Students should show leadership in the St. Louis School community which includes the parish.  Leadership should be complete with specific roles, being a Mass buddy or helping students that are new to the school are wonderful experiences, but all 6th, 7th & 8th graders are Mass buddies.  All students are expected to help new students to the school. 

If you have received a Virtue Award, that is an example of being a leader/example for others and the Faculty Council will have a list of all students who have received Virtue Awards.

Service
Service is generally considered to be those actions undertaken by the student which are done with or on behalf of others without any direct financial or material compensation.  Students must identify at least 10 hours of service on their Candidate Form, completed since the start of 5th grade.  To determine what may be considered service, remember that a student who serves:

• • Volunteers, providing dependable assistance
  • Is willing to make sacrifices for others
  • Participates in outside activities i.e. Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, class volunteer projects, altar servers
  • Enthusiastically helps when asked
  • Works well with others, group work, willing to complete the part of the task that doesn’t get all of the attention
  • Assists visitors to the school or helps fellow students
  • Works with the elderly, disadvantaged or helps out their family – providing babysitting for no charge, takes care of the lawn without receiving an allowance.

Number of service hours that a student can claim for Safety Patrol, Student Council or Class Activities such as Library helper; will be established by the Faculty Moderator and will be available to the candidate so that all students who participate in these activities are credited with the same amount of hours and the hours match your participation.  Service hours that have been completed for activities outside of school will be self-reported.

Character
A person’s character is defined by their actions.  Gossip and hearsay have no place in deciding character.  The NJHS defines 6 qualities in relation to character:  trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and citizenship.  A student’s disciplinary record will be examined in relation to these criteria for the NJHS.  While a detention does not remove a student’s ability to be a member of the NJHS, a detention for cheating would be examined seriously.  At St. Louis School students can receive a detention starting in the 4th grade.  In completing the Candidate Form a student should reflect that a person of character:

• • Takes criticism willingly and accepts recommendations.
  • Consistently exemplifies desirable qualities of behavior (cheerfulness, friendliness, poise, stability).
  • Upholds principles of morality and ethics.
  • Demonstrates the highest standards of honesty, academic integrity and reliability.
  • Actively helps to keep a positive environment in the school, is a positive influence on others.
  • Observes instructions and rule, faithful both inside and outside of the school.
  • Maintains at least a 2 on the report card in areas that relate to Character.