National Honors Society Application Essay

I believe that I am a strong candidate for the National Honors Society because I live in alignment

with the core values that guide the organization: scholarship, service, leadership, and character. I aspire to

contribute to the work of the NHS so that I can broaden my experience of service and leadership and

discover new ways to impact and serve my community along with other members of the NHS.

Scholarship is an important value to me. I’ve always been a dedicated student, an active

participant, and someone who applies myself with confidence in the classroom. I love to learn and grow

as a student, which is why I thrive in the learning environment. I am an organized, determined, and

focused student. I’ve been in the Spanish Immersion program since kindergarten, and I speak Spanish

with confidence. I am driven to do well and to get things done. When challenges arise in my learning I

work hard to overcome them, and to grow in that process. Being in the Stand Alone Remote program for

my entire freshman year was an enormous challenge. I faced issues of mental health, feelings of being

overwhelmed and scared by what was going on in our world, and feeling overloaded with a demanding

academic schedule. Nonetheless, I kept a positive attitude and tried to find the silver lining in my

quarantine experience. I was able to achieve excellent grades and continue all of my extracurricular

activities on zoom. I continued working on all of my community service projects for Project 351,

attending Project 351 zoom meetings, writing my book, and co-teaching a writing workshop to middle

school students. I also participated in the Portrait of a Learner program in the spring of 2021, and was able

to resume volunteering at the library in the summer. Scholarship is an important value to me because of

the connections I make with students and teachers in the classroom through the shared purpose of

learning.

Service has also been important to me since I was young. Over the years I have participated in

service through many different organizations including Helping Hands, Youth Service Opportunities

Project (YSOP), and Project 351. I have also served at the Taft Public Library and at the Unitarian

Universalist Society of Grafton and Upton. Being a part of these organizations has made me a more
empathetic and grateful person. Project 351 is an organization with which I am very active. After being

selected as the Project 351 Mendon ambassador in 2020, I have completed seven service projects, met

amazing leaders and mentors, and learned the Project 351 values of kindness, compassion, humility, and

gratitude. Project 351 has shown me that I can be a leader. I can make a difference, or in the words of

Congressman John Lewis, I can make some “good trouble”. During my ambassador year, 2020, I

completed most of my service projects remotely. Through that experience I learned unique ways to

engage my community, and I had to think of creative means to serve. During my service project in honor

of those lost on September 11, 2001, I created a memorial video featuring many members of our

community including the Mendon Fire Chief. During my Fall Service I engaged my community through

emails and Facebook to donate food to the collection bin for my food drive. Service has been an important

part of my life, and I wish to bring that passion to the NHS.

Leadership is a quality which shows up naturally in everything I do. I enjoy taking charge and

working with others to accomplish common goals. One example of this is the writing group which I

co-led as a freshman from 2020-2021. It originated from the Inspired Learning Day in January of 2020,

when I helped to lead a reading and writing class. We planned elaborate lessons and activities, and kept

our 6-8th grade group engaged in learning about writing. I have also shown leadership as a member of the

Nipmuc Student Council. I am the Liaison on the student council eboard, and I have helped in planning

and working at various events and activities such as Homecoming, the Homecoming Festival, Freshman

Orientation, senior send off, and leaf raking. Throughout my freshman and sophomore year I have been

able to expand my leadership through service projects tackling hunger and child poverty, supporting

veterans, and honoring those lost during the attacks on September 11, 2001.

I believe that my character is reflective of what the National Honors Society seeks in its members.

I am driven to accomplish my goals and I enjoy collaborating with others on projects.This is demonstrated

in the book that I’m writing with two of my close friends. We began writing this novel in 2017, and

despite the pandemic and other hardships we’ve experienced, we have continued to write; we are

determined to publish our book this summer. I also love to inspire and engage others. During many of my
service projects last year, I worked with the 2021 Mendon and Upton Project 351 ambassadors. I helped

them to lead service projects and to build the skills they need to become better leaders. I am passionate

and put my whole heart into everything I do. When I am working to solve a problem that I am passionate

about, I will see it through to its solution. This makes me dependable, because I am someone that others

can rely on to get things done. In the fall of 2021, I was selected to the Alumni Mentoring Corps(AMC)

of Project 351. I am leading a team of eighth grade Project 351 ambassadors in honor of our service hero,

Welles Remy Crowther. I hope to inspire the ambassadors and to help them become the next class of

leaders. My enthusiastic character will contribute to the NHS because I will bring my determination and

positive energy to the organization.

My desire to be a member of the National Honors Society stems from my yearning for new

experiences, personal growth, and a readiness to serve a wider community. I believe that I can truly make

a difference as a member of the NHS. Through my experiences in service and collaboration, my scholarly

achievements, and my outgoing nature, I will contribute to the NHS in a positive way.