The National Honors Society’s Faculty Council voted to increase the minimum GPA for membership eligibility.  Principal Arlotta announced the change in a letter to students and parents over the summer.  The Class of 2017 will have to earn a minimum GPA of 3.750 to become eligible for membership, compared to the 3.50 minimum GPA requirements for previous classes.

Class of 2017 Faculty Advisor Ms. Patel stated that she believed the raise in the minimum GPA requirement can be attributed to a larger effort to make the Society more exclusive, and perhaps prestigious.

“Students were performing so high that enough students are eligible for this club. They wanted to make it more exclusive,” Ms. Patel said.

According to the High School handbook, a 3.750 GPA is equivalent to a mixture of grades ranging from A- to B+, while a 3.50 GPA is equivalent to a mixture grades ranging from B+ to B. The Class of 2017 will have to earn higher grades across the board in order to become eligible for membership.

However, the student body has mixed views about this sudden policy change.

“I don’t like it because the students before us had a better chance of getting in and we don’t have the same opportunity as them,” freshman Connor Smith said.

Whether the GPA requirement will actually attract higher caliber students and transform the Society into a more exclusive organization is still debated, as well.

“I think that the grade point average is intended so that they can get better kids to go into Honors Society because they think the better the Grade Point Average the better the student but this isn’t necessarily true ,” senior Max Kushnir said.