Merit based groups lose their validity and prestige when they are only done for self glorification and status, and The Columbus School community has turned an otherwise honorable organization into an excuse for supremacy. The National Honor Society (NHS) is an organization established to recognize outstanding students in high schools around the world. It operates based on the four pillars of honor: scholarship, service, leadership and character; which have to be met inside certain standards in order for students to qualify into NHS. However, despite the organization’s honorary and rewarding intentions, TCS students have managed to turn NHS into an environment full of unnecessary competitivity leading to superior behavior and maybe even rigorous segregation.

It is common to notice NHS students at TCS acting somewhat differently because of the fact that they are part of this specific organization. As a consequence of trying to become worthy of being NHS material, individuals have started to act competitive and superior towards their peers. Even though she isn’t part of NHS, TCS junior Sofia Niño is still one of the top students of her class, which gives her a valuable outsider perspective on this behaviour, “I don’t think it is morally correct to have a competition based on the number of social hours a student has. You are putting measures on the kindness of our hearts; that isn’t something that should be measured.” One of the most important pillars of NHS is service, which centers on getting social hours by helping communities in need. However, members are completely shifting what it really means to exhibit NHS service behavior. As noticed by NHS communicator and historian Mariana Salazar, “Some students want to be in NHS because they need something in return for the hours, and not necessarily because they are truly interested in helping people.” The authenticity and selflessness of helping others, has been lost in the midst of longing to be part of NHS solely for a personal benefit.

On the contrary, some NHS students have utterly lost their interest on what being part of this honorary society really is. Instead of competing for the number of hours, some members act as if being part of NHS meant nothing at all. Undoubtedly, this behavior doesn’t go unnoticed; Maria Teresa Mejia, the NHS advisor expresses that, “There has to be a different sense of ownership for NHS, but it has to come from the students… if you don’t think it’s important, why are you part of NHS at all?”. Another one of NHS’s main pillars is leadership, which encourages members to improve constantly and be the best version of themselves; however, many TCS members don’t understand the significance of portraying said interest to be part of the society. According to NHS eligibility requirements in their website, “Student leaders are those who are resourceful, good problem solvers, and idea contributors.” The profile that an NHS students should portray, is expected to be one fulfilled with interest and passion. It doesn’t make sense to be part of something that you don’t care about, so are TCS students joining NHS because it is their true goal, or just because of the status it awards them?

Finally, NHS should be an organization that promotes true outstanding individuals that act accordingly to the standards set for the membership. A place where an individual’s character has such a significant impact, shouldn’t be facing issues as superiority, competitivity and lack of interest. If it continues to do so, NHS might end up with the same fate as in Marymount school here in Medellin, where it had to be completely eradicated because it was promoting rigorous academic competition. Girls where focusing purely on academic rankings and were even demanding that the required GPA to be in the honor society, was increased. This might be the situation here in TCS because even though NHS as a whole does work toward creating these said types of individuals, students aren’t working together in order to truly be worthy NHS material that matches what the society represents at its core. This is an improvement that has to come from the members’ wishes and understanding that there is an issue that desperately calls for a solution. Similarly to global issues in modern society,  improvement only arrives with a change in character from those wholeheartedly affected.

If NHS wants to actually be seen as an honorary organization with outstanding members, there has to be a significant improvement on each individual’s behaviour. The projection that an NHS members gives the school community, is the same one that would be  given towards their society. If this behaviour is full of superiority, competitivity and overall negative impacts on the community, these members are not going to be the outstanding citizens the school desperately wants to take credit for.