National Society of Collegiate Scholars

The National Society of Collegiate Scholars (NSCS) is a national non-profit academic honor society for college students in the United States. NSCS has active chapters at over 300 colleges and universities in the United States, including the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.[1][2]

The National Society of Collegiate Scholars (NSCS)
The National Logo
MottoHonor. Inspire. Engage.
FormationApril 30, 1994 at the George Washington University
TypeHonor society
HeadquartersWashington, DC
Location
Membership
1.4 million
Founder
Stephen E. Loflin
Websitenscs.org

Overview

As of Fall 2019, NSCS had over 300 registered and active on-campus chapters, including the national chapter and 1.4 million members, including 140,000 active members and 60,000 new members each year.[3][4]

Chapters engage in community service,[5] as well as scholastic and social activities. Prior to January 2020, membership was available to first- and second-year college students with GPAs of at least 3.4.[6] As of January 2020, the GPA requirement was reduced to 3.0.[7] In either case, the GPA fulfills the requirement of being in the top 20% of their class.

The NSCS Board of Directors is advised by National Leadership Council (NLC), a student advisory council consisting of selected student members.[8][9][10]

Affiliations

NSCS is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization accredited by the Association of College Honor Societies,[11][12][13] and is tax-exempt.[14]

The National Society of Collegiate Scholars is a member of several organizations, which include the Association of College Honor Societies, the certifying agency for college and university honor societies in the United States.[1] Other organizations of which NSCS is a member include the following:

Because NSCS is a member of the Association of College Honor Societies, student members qualify for a two-level pay grade increase with the U.S. Federal Government.[18]

History

NSCS was founded in 1994 at George Washington University in Washington, DC, by Steve Loflin, who, at the time, worked in Student Affairs at George Washington University.[19][20] The first NSCS Convocation Induction was held on the George Washington University campus on April 30, 1994. Loflin founded NSCS to recognize students who performed well academically during their first years in college and to provide members with an opportunity to take a leadership role in the organization.[1]

In 2017, NSCS partnered with Active Minds to help remove stigmas surrounding mental health. NSCS and Active minds emphasized that there is no correlation between GPA and mental health, and that high achievers should also not hesitate to seek mental counseling when necessary.[21][22]

Scholarships

NSCS offers both undergraduate and graduate scholarships to its members. More than $1 million worth of scholarships, awards and chapter funds are given out annually by NSCS. Scholarships that are distributed include multiple recipients for each of the following:[23]

  • First-in-Family Scholarship
  • NSCS New Member Award
  • NSCS-GEICO Award
  • Induction Recognition Award
  • Inspire Integrity Award
  • Absolute Internship Scholarship
  • NLC Award
  • NSCS Award for Military Service
  • NSCS-GEICO Graduate Scholarship
  • Scholar Abroad Scholarship
  • Online Scholar Award
  • Summer Scholar Award
  • Debt Reduction Award
  • Active Minds Mental Health Advocate Award
  • Semester at Sea Scholarship
  • Community College Transition Award
  • NSCS Mentorship Award
  • Amy Shopkorn Student Affairs Award
  • Jim Duncan Award for Perseverance
  • Summer Internship Award
  • Professional Development Award for Graduating Seniors
  • NSCS Spirit Award

The society offers educational opportunities with organizations such as DC Internships, FutureDocsAbroad, GiftedHire, Make School, Semester at Sea, and Outward Bound Costa Rica.[24][25]

Programs

NSCS has three signature programs, which are:[26]

  • PACE (Planning to Achieve Collegiate Excellence): A mentorship program which connects selected NSCS members with local middle school students.
  • New Member Induction Ceremony: An event which inducts new members into the society, and recognizes Distinguished Honorary Members (DHMs). NSCS chapters welcome new members into the chapter during this formal induction ceremony, which is held during the Fall of each year.[4]
  • Integrity Week: An event week held annually during the second week of each February. Each year, NSCS designates an I Stand for Integrity Week. It offers its members scholarships and awards for professors who encourage integrity in their students.[27][28]

Notable members

Selected NSCS Distinguished Honorary Members (DHMs) include:[29]

References
  1. Association of College Honor Societies. 2010
  2. Carter, Carol J. (July 6, 2014). "Celebrating Emerging Scholars, NSCS, and the Power of a Crazy Idea". Huffington Post. Retrieved October 18, 2019.
  3. "NSCS (The National Society of Collegiate Scholars)". Association of College Honor Societies. Retrieved October 18, 2019.
  4. "About Chapters".
  5. "Community service". Georgia Tech NSCS Community Service. 2009. Archived from the original on March 16, 2008.
  6. "Nomination for the National Society of Collegiate Scholars". National Society of Collegiate Scholars. Archived from the original on 2019-12-14. Retrieved August 8, 2020.CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  7. "Nomination for the National Society of Collegiate Scholars". National Society of Collegiate Scholars. Archived from the original on 2020-01-15. Retrieved August 8, 2020.CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  8. "National Leadership Council (NLC)".
  9. "Distinguished Honorary Members (DHMs)".
  10. "NSCS Board of Directors".
  11. How Can You Tell If Your Honor Society Is Legitimate?. NSCS.
  12. Wilson, Matthew (March 7, 2017). "How to tell sketchy honor societies from legitimate ones". USA Today. Retrieved October 18, 2019.
  13. "Honor Societies Certified by ACHS". Association of College Honor Societies. Retrieved October 18, 2019.
  14. "Internal Revenue Service Online Charity Search".
  15. National Scholarship Providers Association
  16. American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions
  17. American Association of Community Colleges
  18. "Federal benefits of ACHS membership". Association of College Honor Societies.
  19. Carter, Carol J. (July 6, 2014). "Celebrating Emerging Scholars, NSCS, and the Power of a Crazy Idea". Huffington Post. Retrieved October 18, 2019.
  20. Lindsay, Matt (May 7, 2004). "National Society of Collegiate Scholars celebrates 10th anniversary". George Washington University. Retrieved October 18, 2019.
  21. Babu, Soundharjya (October 13, 2019). "Active Minds and The National Society of Collegiate Scholars prove GPA does not influence mental health". RMU Sentry Media. Retrieved October 18, 2019.
  22. Amy, Shirley (September 25, 2019). "National Society of Collegiate Scholars & Active MindsReport: Mental Health Does Not Discriminate By GPA". eCounseling. Retrieved October 18, 2019.
  23. "Scholarships". National Society of Collegiate Scholars. 2019. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
  24. "Outward Bound Costa Rica".
  25. "Partner Benefits". NSCS.
  26. "NSCS 2019-2020 Officer Handbook". Issuu. July 5, 2019. Retrieved October 18, 2019.
  27. "Inspire Integrity Awards Finalists Named". Baylor University. January 16, 2009. Retrieved 2009-01-16.
  28. "Professor inspires integrity in field". The Rebel Yell. January 22, 2009. Archived from the original on 2011-10-06. Retrieved 2009-01-22.
  29. Distinguished Honorary Members. NSCS.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.