• NJHS MEMBERSHIP CRITERIA

    Scholarship:

    Pottsgrove Middle School students who have received distinguished honors 1st and 2nd marking periods  meet the scholarship requirement and are eligible for consideration for induction into NJHS  on the basis of service, leadership, character, and citizenship. Students are required to complete an online application, write a 300 word essay, submit a recommendation letter from a current teacher and obtain signatures from extra curricular activity advisors/coaches. 

    Leadership:

    • The student who exercises leadership
    • Is resourceful in proposing new problems, applying principles, and making suggestions
    • Demonstrates initiative in promoting school activities
    • Exercises positive influence on peers in upholding school ideals
    • Contributes ideas that improve the civic life of the school
    • Is able to delegate responsibilities
    • Exemplifies positive attitudes
    • 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, and in other school or community activities
    • Is thoroughly dependable in any responsibility accepted
    • Is willing to uphold scholarship and maintain a loyal school attitude.
    Leadership experiences can be drawn from school or community activity while working with or for others.

    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 to the individual performing the service. In considering service, the contributions this candidate has made to school, classmates, and community, as well as the student’s attitude toward service can be reviewed.
     
    The student who serves:
    • Volunteers and provides dependable and well organized assistance, is gladly available, and is willing to sacrifice to offer assistance
    • Works well with others and is willing to take on difficult or inconspicuous responsibilities
    • Cheerfully and enthusiastically renders any requested service to the school
    • Is willing to represent the class of school in inter-class and inter-scholastic competition
    • Does committee and staff work without complaint
    • Participates in some activity outside of school, for example, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, religious groups, volunteer services for the elderly, poor, or disadvantaged
    • Mentors persons in the community or students at other schools
    • Shows courtesy by assisting visitors, teachers, and students.

    Citizenship:

    The student who demonstrates citizenship:
    • Understands the importance of civic involvement
    • Has a high regard for freedom, justice, and respect of the American form of government (representative democracy)
    • Demonstrates mature participation and responsibility through involvement with such activities as Scouting, community organizations, and school clubs

    Character:

    Character is probably the most difficult criterion to define. The Faculty Council should consider the positive as well as the negative aspects of character. All judgments in this and other selection criteria should be free of speculation and rumor.

    National Junior Honor Society is a member of the Character Counts! Coalition. Through this activity, the society supports and recommends the use of a multi-faceted definition of character known as the “Six Pillars of Character.” A person of character demonstrates the following six qualities: respect, responsibility, trustworthiness, fairness, caring, and citizenship.

    In addition, it can also be said that the student of character:
    • Takes criticism willingly and accepts recommendations graciously
    • Consistently exemplifies desirable qualities of behavior (cheerfulness, friendliness, poise, stability)
    • Upholds principles of morality and ethics
    • Cooperates by complying with school regulations concerning property, programs, office, halls, etc.
    • Demonstrates the highest standards of honesty and reliability
    • Regularly shows courtesy, concern, and respect for others
    • Observes instructions and rules, is punctual, and faithful both inside and outside the classroom
    • Has powers of concentration, self-discipline, and sustained attention as shown by perseverance and application to studies
    • Manifests truthfulness in acknowledging obedience to rules, avoiding cheating in written work, and showing unwillingness to profit by the mistakes of others
    • Actively helps rid the school of bad influences or environment.