Academics, service, leadership and scholarship were the qualities front and center at the annual National Honor Society induction ceremony held Nov. 14 in the Northwestern Lehigh High School auditorium.

“A large part of the 11th graders were able to qualify for National Honor Society,” organization President Bradley Shafer said. “It’s definitely a good measure of how the students and the school is doing.”

Shafer officiated the event, calling the group to order, offering a welcome and administering the National Honor Society pledge.

The cardinal principles of the organization were explained before Assistant Principal Don Allen formally accepted the new members.

Allen said the induction ceremony was nothing short of great.

“They’re a fantastic group of kids,” Allen said. “You can’t walk down the halls without seeing them involved in some pretty amazing stuff, like the morning show or the science club.

“This group excels at whatever they do. They’re friendly and they support one another.”

“The officers who spoke did an outstanding job,” Kelly Bleam stated, who is one of the advisers of the organization along with Nicole Zimmerman. “They set a great tone in the assembly and it was very well attended.”

In addition to Shafer, this year’s officers include Paige Stitzel and Elizabeth Fornauf, vice presidents; Dominic Mertz, secretary; Kyle Bellhorn, treasurer; and Megan Rebert, historian.

The two new Northwestern Honor Society advisers were proud of how the members of the Honor Society conducted themselves.

“These kids deserve to be recognized,” Bleam said. “I don’t know if we award high performing students enough. Nicole and I both thought it was important to [serve as advisers] for our kids.”

Those interested in joining National Honor Society have to meet strict standards.

“We had to have a 93.0 or higher average overall and participate in [at least] two extra-curricular activities,” one of the inductees Caleb Bachman said. “We also had to write an essay about the qualities a leader should have, and how you see yourself as a leader.”

“We had a faculty council that reviewed the applicants,” Bleam said.

“We first got an invitation,” Briana Mitich said. “I wrote about how I danced for 15 years and the qualities needed to work as an assistant teacher at my [dance studio]. Part of leadership is to never give up.”

Mitich was among the inductees who joined the group with “a good number of [her] friends.”

“[The induction] is a great representation of how hardworking we are as students,” Mitich said. “My parents were really proud.”

Mitich’s mother, Jolene, said her daughter “actually likes to study.

“I come from a family of teachers [so] academics is the utmost to me,” former teacher Jolene Mitich said. “I have not one bad thing to say about this school district. I moved specifically because of this school.”

“It’s really cool to see your school recognize you for your hard work,” Shafer said. “The community comes together to see how well the students and the school are doing.”

“[Being in NHS] is a good experience that will help [us develop] leadership and [be a positive addition] on the college resumes,” Bachman said.

The group also honored science teacher Steve Gensists by selecting him as this year’s honorary National Honor Society member.

“He was almost unanimously voted in,” Bleam said. “The students had outstanding things to say about him. He really inspires the kids.”

“He’s like a wise old owl,” Rebert said with a smile. “Everybody loves him.”

A sense of humor and a commitment to instructing students are the hallmarks of Gensits’ teaching practices.

The next step for NHS is to determine how to serve the school and community.

“They decide the events and the community service activities,” Zimmerman said.

“We’re meeting with the new members in two weeks or so,” Shafer added.

“We have an amazing group of students,” said Zimmerman, a guidance counselor. “I’m so proud we have 47 out of approximately 175 juniors able to join this group.”

“This is such an easy club to advise because they’re the best of the best,” said Bleam, math teacher and department chair. “I had many of them as sophomores and I have some of them now. I feel like I know the inductees. They’re just terrific kids.”