February 21st, 2024
Leadership, character, service, and scholarship are the four pillars of one of the most noteworthy high school academic programs in the country.
On Monday evening, Grand Island Senior High (GISH) welcomed its newest members to the storied society as part of its commitment to empowering students to achieve both inside and outside the classroom. 35 GISH Juniors were honored with induction into the National Honor Society (NHS).
The ceremony itself, rooted in tradition, is a landmark annual event for GISH. Mrs. Ashley Shultz, GISH AP US Government & AP World History Teacher and NHS advisor, sees the induction ceremony bringing a deeper connection for students to something bigger than themselves.
“One of the reasons an induction ceremony is so important is that it connects our students to thousands of others around the nation who are also having their membership into the National Honor Society conferred.” Shultz said, “It is more than just a one time certificate that students earn, but rather they are taking an oath to continue to uphold the pillars and core values of National Honor Society both in school and outside of it.”
Founded in 1921, NHS has become a long-standing, prestigious program holding more than 16,000 active members per the National Honor Society website. In order to qualify for membership into NHS, students must meet a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.5. From there membership is not automatically granted, but is also based on student service, leadership, and character, as demonstrated by activities and teacher input. Students must also write an essay sharing how they plan to continue to uphold these four pillars in both the school and the community.
“The Grand Island Senior High chapter has been in existence for many years.” Avery Rogers, GISH Senior and NHS Chapter President, shared during her message, “We are honored for these new inductees to be part of our tradition!”
As newly inducted members, the honored Juniors join the current Senior members in being active in school leadership and beyond. Each GISH NHS member develops their own individual service project designed to make a positive impact in the community. In supporting the creative, volunteer efforts, Shultz loves seeing students committed to giving back.
“You can really begin to see what students are passionate about and how they want to continue to help in their school and community.” Shultz said, “I've seen students host book or pet supply drives, work with local retirement homes to host evening events, and put together kids activity baskets for local hospitals. For many students it is an eye opening experience to do something like hand out boxes of food almost every weekend and see the need in our community, but they are always eager to help and I think it helps them see how someone can be involved in the community both now and in the future.”
Congratulations to the 2024 GISH National Honor Society inductees:
- Gabriella Adams
- Cassidy Boettger
- Kaden Boltz
- Cara Camplin
- Cole Fernau
- Ashley Garcia
- Cody Garrett
- Claire Gartner
- Trajon Geiser
- Kimberly Gonzalez
- Sophia Heminger
- Cristian Hernandez
- Riley Holling
- Raygan Hoos
- Gavin Kuhlman
- Jennifer Lara-Patino
- Alekzander Kuebler
- Thomas Liegl
- Aubrey Luna
- Olivia Madison
- Jaysa Mierau
- Arleth Nunez Acosta
- Cydney Obermeier
- Juan Palma
- Kaitlin Payne
- Owen Payne
- Jocelyn Richling
- Ashlyn Ruzicka
- Gabriella Smith
- Riley Voss
- Addysen Waind
- Alex Weaver
- Ty Williams
- Adeline Woods
- Mukarim Yahya
