Julia Kim
Staff Writer
Video by Chloe Lanier
Forty-two new faces walked across the stage on Tuesday night, heads high and faces proud. The new inductees crossed the stage before the current National Honor Society (NHS) officers, NHS sponsor Kevin Casey, administrators and their parents.
The class of 2012 junior inductees are Alyssa Baker, Evan Baker, Madison Butzer, Wynn Cary, Patrizio Chiquini, Grant Clift, Madeline Daily, Abigail Davis, Ethan Evans, Harmony Fan, Adrian Galvan, Max Green, Sarah Hall, Kyle Jaksa, Kasey Johnson, Danny Jung, Vicky Kao, Cynthia Kim, Tanner Lines, Brindan Martin, Lauren McGrady, Sam Moran, So Mi Park, Laura Poe, Chris Ponmanissery, Hannah Popper, Jett Raines, Jesse Rehling, Jason Reyes, Sarah Rouhani, Vanessa Santillan, Kelly Sigmund, Nicholas Velez, Grant Vlahos, Wesley Vohs, Lauren Walter, Chenglai Wu, Jennifer Xu and Daniel Yo.
The new class of 2011 seniors are Madison Creel, Sarah Lee and Nick Martinez.
These individuals were recognized by the Coppell High School Excalibur Chapter of the program.
“The students are a very strong group of 42,” Casey said. “The seniors, specifically, have a lot of catching up to do [because] they are joining near the end of the first semester.”
To apply, students were required to have a cumulative GPA of 4.8, a letter of recommendation, two teacher evaluations, a resume and a statement of purpose. All of these respective elements were due Nov. 26.
“The officers and Mr. Casey, together, reviewed the new set of applications,” NHS President Judy Hong said. “We ultimately judged them based on each individual’s character. The recommendations from the teachers were really helpful because they revealed the personalities of the students and their potential as members. Then, [the committee] evaluated their personal statements and extracurricular activities.”
This was a great opportunity for new, previously ineligible and unaware students to join a prestigious society involved in a multitude of different acts of volunteering including helping at local elementary schools, assisting food drives and banks and picking up trash at monthly trash pick-ups.
“The applications were very academically strong and impressive,” Hong said. “We [many of the officers] were familiar with our peers who applied which gave us even more of an advantage when reviewing the materials.”
At the ceremony, officers emphasized the importance of scholarship, leadership, service and character – ideals that remain prevalent in the club. Candles representing each membership quality were lit by the current NHS officers, and following this, Hong announced the list of candidates who were greeted onstage by CHS Principal Brad Hunt. The junior attendance secretary Allie Quill closed the ceremony by reciting the NHS pledge with the new inductees.
“Hopefully, we laid out the expectations and responsibilities as a member of NHS,” Casey said.
In the spring, there will be another induction ceremony for sophomores who will apply in a similar manner. The society does this to ensure that the new sophomores will be active during their junior and senior years.
As the final inductees crossed the stage, people cheered one last time for the students that joined the organization; new members that are prepared to serve as models true to the principles of NHS.
