Attention all future freshmen, sophomores, juniors and seniors! Welcome to the first article of a month-long series dedicated to helping YOU— the students at Cherokee — enter into some of the best honor societies our school has to offer. This first week is all about National Honor Society. In this article, we will discuss requirements, service hour deadlines, and what this society has to offer.

Grade Point Average:

Juniors or seniors looking to start the application process should have a minimum unweighted GPA of 3.25, or a minimum weighted GPA of 4.875. You must meet this requirement by the end of either your sophomore or junior year if you wish to apply in the following school year.

You must maintain this GPA throughout your time in the National Honor Society, or your membership may be reevaluated.

Service Hours:

When applying to National Honor Society, you must have a plethora of service hours under your belt. The cutoff for service hour eligibility is typically the July before the following school year, so make sure you have the needed hours before then. Don’t wait until the last minute!

You must have 10 hours of service per semester that you are in Cherokee High School in order to apply. For instance, if you are a Sophomore looking to apply in this coming year, 2025-2026, you must have 40 hours of service before this coming July. If you are a Junior looking to apply to be a member during your senior year, you must have 60 hours of service completed by this coming July. 

It’s important that, if you haven’t already done so, you get signed letterheads from the different organizations from which you have earned service hours. Any organizations outside of Cherokee must provide this letterhead stating your service. Otherwise, those hours will not be added to your total.

It is never too early to start asking for these signed letters! Make sure you have kept track of your dates, times, and hours. A Google spreadsheet can certainly help.

Leadership & Activities:

If you are seeking to become a member of the National Honor Society, you must participate in at least three clubs or sports during your freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior years. If one of these is a sport you have yet to make the team for, I would highly recommend that you join a third club just as a backup.

You must also have been in a leadership position in either your freshman or sophomore year. If you are applying for your senior year, you are granted your junior year to gain this position. This could range anywhere from a leadership position at a camp, the captain of a sports team, or a role in our Cherokee performing arts.

Maintaining Membership:

In order to maintain your position in National Honor Society, you must attend at least half of the monthly meetings. These are after school, usually on Wednesdays, and last for roughly 5 to 10 minutes. Easy work.

You must continue to have hours of service, 10 per semester. Any hours you collect from July to late January will count towards your first semester’s total. Any hours collected from after the first deadline until mid-May will count towards your second semester. It is important to stay ahead of the game so that you’re not scrambling to find service opportunities at the last second.

Application Process:

At Cherokee High School, we are the Adewihi chapter of NHS. While the application process may seem intimidating, it is well worth it to enter this incredible society. To start off, you must have all of your records of your service hours with signatures and contact information. You must also have signatures from club advisors to prove you are a member. Additionally, you must write an essay demonstrating how you exhibit the four pillars of character: Scholarship, Service, Leadership, and Character. 

The deadline for the application is typically early October. It is never too early to start preparing.

Stay tuned for more information on other Honor Societies Cherokee has to offer, with a new article dropping every week.