Starting next fall, to be a member of BSM’s chapter of the National Honor Society, in addition to fulfilling the academic requirements, students will have to pay a membership fee of $100 per year.
This decision was made by NHS advisor Alena Paulson, who said the money will go toward t-shirts, snacks for group meetings, and running events that would not otherwise be possible. Paulson said BSM’s chapter of NHS currently receives little funding from the school, so it can be a challenge to organize and run events without a bigger budget.
“We’re calling them NHS dues, and I don’t want to support the mindset that it’s a fee, but more so that it’s a way to bolster what our club is capable of doing,” Paulson said. “I’ve talked with a couple other advisors of [chapters], and while not all of them have some sort of a dues or a membership fee, if you will, some of them do and it’s really coming from the mindset of, I want us to be able to do more.”
NHS runs a blood drive every year, but lacks the funding to do more service-based events. “[The money] would be for materials for service projects that we do in the event that we want to partner with a nonprofit,” Paulson said. “I’ve looked into some where [we would] make sandwiches for organizations and then deliver them to homeless shelters, or help plant trees, and maybe we’re purchasing shovels and things to help with that.”
If the fee poses a financial hardship for any student, Paulson said she will talk to BSM’s financial aid department, so that no student will be unable to join because they cannot pay. Even so, many NHS members feel that $100 is a lot of money, and students who don’t qualify for financial aid might still have a hard time paying the fee if their parents are unwilling to pay. “I think when we have a lot of other sports and activities that do get funding from BSM, but [students] do not have to pay for that funding, I feel like it’s a little bit unfair for NHS,” junior member Audrey Broglio said. “It might turn people away if they have to pay for it.”
Similarly, NHS president Patrick McDonald agreed that the idea of a fee could change people’s attitudes toward the honor society. “Anytime something has a cost associated with it, the people might think it’s something you could buy your way into. But the [academic and service] requirements to join the honor society will stay the same,” McDonald said.
Broglio said that while it may be a lot of money, if the money is well spent, the membership dues could have a positive impact. “Part of my opinion on it is going to be like, see how it really is used next year for tutoring events or something. I think that’s a good thing to have money for,” Broglio said.