Membership Criteria

  •  Sipsey Valley Middle School Chapter of The National Junior Honor Society
    Membership Criteria
    • Candidates eligible for election to the chapter need a minimum scholarship average of 3.50/4.0 (85) or above.
    • Candidates must be in the seventh grade and have attended SVMS for at least one (1) semester, be a transfer student in the eighth grade who has attended SVMS for one (1) semester, and have a 3.50/4.0 (85) average in academic subjects beginning in the sixth grade.
    • Candidates must be enrolled in a minimum of four academic subjects: English, mathematics, science, and social studies.
    • Candidates must complete and return the membership application. 
    • Teacher Evaluations for each student will be collected after the initial application has been returned. Teachers will evaluate students on their aptitude in the following areas: Scholarship, Citizenship, Service, Leadership, and Character. 

    Criteria Explanations

    Scholarship: Scholarship denotes a commitment to learning. A student is willing to spend hours on reading and studying, knowing the lasting benefits of a cultivated mind. We should continue to learn even when formal education has ended, for human education ends only with the end of life. Knowledge is one great element in life, which leads to the highest success, and it can be acquired in only one way- through diligence and effort. Learning furnishes the lamp by which we read the past, the torch guiding us to understand the present, and the light that illuminates the future. Candidates have the charge to continually expand their world through the opportunities inherent in scholarship.

    Citizenship: Citizenship –the obligation each member of our society faces to live up to the democratic ideals given to us by the founders of our country. The responsibilities each of us has to our home community, our state, our nation, and our world are many. As good citizens, we are bound to live up to the laws and guidelines which unites us as a civilized society. Good citizens work together to improve not only our lives, but the lives of all our fellow citizens. Good citizenship requires that we remain strong and vigilant in protecting the freedoms and rights that have been granted to us and in preventing injustice from entering our lives. We, the members of the chapter, are called to live up to the high standards of Citizenship from this day forward.

    Service: Service can be established in the routine of the day’s work where many opportunities arise to help others both at school and in the community. A willingness to work for the benefit of those in need, without monetary compensation or public recognition, is the quality we seek in our membership and promote for the entire student body. We are committed to volunteering our time and talents to the creation of a better tomorrow.

    Leadership: Leadership should exert a wholesome influence on the school. In taking initiative in the classroom and in school activities, the real leader strives to train and aid others to reach their common goals of success. The price of leadership is sacrifice- the willingness to yield one’s personal interest for the interests of others. A leader has self-confidence and will go forward when others hesitate. No matter what power and resources may exist in a school, community, or nation, they are ineffectual without the guidance of a wise leader. Leadership is always needed; thus, to lead is a meaningful and substantive charge to each of our members.

    Character: Character is the force within each individual that distinguishes one person from others. It gives each of us our individuality. It is that without which no one can respect oneself, nor hope to attain the respect of others. It is this force of character that guides one through life and, once developed, grows steadily. Character is achieved and not received. It is the product of constant action and striving daily to make the right choice. The problem of character is the problem of self-control. We must be in reality what we wish to appear to others. By demonstrating such qualities as respect, responsibility, trustworthiness, fairness, caring, and citizenship,we may hope to prove by example that we value character.