3 Ideas to Bring the Year to a Close
As this academic year draws to a close, here are three things you can do as an adviser to wrap up successfully:
Prepare a report. Don’t be the best-kept secret. Share your chapter’s or council’s accomplishments in a report to your principal. It should include the total money raised for charitable causes, the number of hours logged by your students and chapter or council toward individual and group service projects, as well as other quantifiable data. Your principal has a responsibility to continually improve culture within your building and show evidence that the school is a strong community partner. Your members’ hard work should be celebrated for furthering this goal.
Say “Thank you.” Send a letter, an email, or a token of appreciation to those who have supported your efforts this year-be it a special guest speaker from the community or a fellow faculty member who helped you get the word out about a service activity.
Plan for next year. Will there be a new adviser? Be sure to notify the national office by completing the online Adviser Change Form or emailing [email protected], [email protected], or [email protected]. If you’ll be continuing, update your records and files to start your new year smoothly.
And, from time to time, check the websites—www.njhs.us, www.nhs.us, and www.nasc.us—for updates on programs and activities for the coming academic year.
Help Us Help You!
The national office wants your feedback about the programs and services we provide each year for National Junior Honor Society, National Honor Society, and National Association of Student Councils member schools and students. And we want to learn about your accomplishments or challenges. Each spring, we give you a means to share that information through our annual adviser survey.
With more than 34,000 NHS and NJHS chapters and NASC councils combined, the collective wisdom of advisers offers us important insight. It also substantiates—through some incredibly compelling statistics—the significant difference student members make in the lives of their schools and communities through service projects and leadership activities. A link to the adviser survey will be available online in April at www.nhs.us, www.njhs.us, and www.nasc.us. Please reserve some time to complete the survey to ensure the impact of your program is considered and your voice is heard.
Make a Difference Right Here, Right Now
National Student Leadership Week (NSLW) is April 17–23, and we hope you and your students will participate in this year’s theme, “Right Here, Right Now.” Use #NSLW16 when posting on social media to tell us about your chapter or council’s NSLW activities that are making a difference in your school or community. For online resources to help you plan and promote your activities, visit www.nhs.us/nslw, www.njhs.us/nslw, or www.nasc.us/nslw.
Virtual College Fair
CollegeWeekLive, a digital platform that connects higher education institutions with prospective students, is partnering with NHS to hold a virtual college fair on May 17. As many as 1 million Honor Society members from around the country will be able to chat live with admissions counselors and current students attending colleges and universities around the world. For more information about participating in the virtual college fair, visit www.nhs.us/virtualcollegefair.
Dates to Remember
April
Winners of the NHS/NJHS Outstanding Service Project Award notified
April 11–15: National Assistant Principals Week
April 17–23: National Student Leadership Week
April 28: Announcement of the NJHS Outstanding Achievement Award winners
May
May 17: NHS Virtual College Fair
June
June 24–26: NASC National Conference in Portland, OR
Submit Your Projects!
As the school year comes to a close, be sure to submit all your NJHS, NHS, and NASC activities to the National Student Project Database (www.nhs.us/projects, www.njhs.us/projects, or www.nasc.us/projects). While you’re there, take a look at what other chapters or councils are doing and consider exploring similar options as you begin planning for the next school year.