What do you think about national honor societies not allowing participation by homeschoolers?

Question

I know that "the" National Honor Society does not accept homeschooled students.

I asked Quill & Scroll (which is an International Honor Society for high school journalists) if they accepted homeschooled students and if I could start a chapter.

I was politely told NO but given no reason other than "policy."

Thoughts? Discrimination?

Any ideas on what could be done (over time) to change this?

Answer 1

The issue is one of credibility of references. Students who are admitted into the societies are scrutinized by many different adults who do not have a vested interest in their success -- that is, they are not the student's parent or parent's best friend.  The students are required to provide verifiable evidence of their activities, and their scholarship is verified by a school.

Don't take this wrong, but I have never met a homeschooled child with grades lower than a B+.

Answer 2

No discrimination - just good policy!!!!  It should not be changed.

Answer 3

I agree with the honor societies.  There is no way to monitor the homeschoolers.  They would rather not risk the integrity of their society by admitting homeschoolers.  I can't say I blame them.  The quality of education students receive at home depends on the quality of the teacher at home.  I had a student who was excellent - well adjusted, well read, very intelligent.  He was one of my best students (came to traditional high school at grade 9).  I had another student who was the exact opposite.  Both moms, though, thought they did a great job with their sons.  Of course mom #1 really did.

Answer 4

I didn't even know what the National Honor Society was (I'm Canadian--I don't think we have anything even similar to that) so went to look up stuff online.

Looking through their constitution, I can see why they won't allow homeschooled students. If a student, to be a member, has to be a member of a chapter, then there has to be a chapter. No homeschool qualifies to have a chapter given the structure required by the society for a chapter. All kinds of criteria make it clear that it really has to be for a traditional school. And more to the point, from what I've read, private school students aren't allowed to be members, either. To have a charter, it MUST be a PUBLIC secondary school. If they are discriminating against homeschoolers, they are discriminating just as much against private schooled students.  You can read more here http://www.nhs.us/s_nhs/bin.asp?CID=124&... . The supervising organization for the Honor Society is the National

Association of Secondary School Principals, which I assume is public school principals--private schools around here don't have "principals", so that's the assumption I'm going on.

Looking up Quill and Scroll, they, too, have requirements completely tied to a typical high school. It's about the SCHOOLS, not that the students are homeschooled.  I've looked at the requirements for membership and it's things like "upper third of the class have to recommend" and other things that homeschoolers can't possibly meet. A high school with not enough students also wouldn't qualify.

Sorry, this just sounds a bit to me like boys complaining they can't be members of the Girl Scouts. :) They are both societies designed by school people for high schools; the National by public school authorities for public school students. Their policies and constitutions are clear. It might seem unfair that homeschoolers miss out on that, but I wouldn't call it discrimination.

Answer 5

I think if homeschoolers started getting published in real magazines and newspapers they should start their own society and restrict it ONLY to people with at least two print published materials (and these can't be student or school publications but only professional, regional or national or international magazines and newspapers listed in Writer's Digest and other reputable sources -- maybe have a distribution limitation, the subscription for the paper or magazine has to be 100,000 or higher).

The best way to GET EVEN is to OUT DO them!

Answer 6

Try Eta Sigma Alpha National Home School Honor Society.

http://www.esaalpha.net

http://esa.homeeducationpartnership.com/

http://www.knowledgehouse.info/KHS-ED.ht...

http://www.arch-homeschool.org/wst_page7...

Answer 7

I would say this would be something the folks at HSLDA could advise on.

I personally think it sucks, to put it lightly...homeschool kids have shown, time and time again, that they can do the work to earn admittance to these societies, yet "policy" keeps them out.  Yes, that is discrimination.

Yet like everything else in the system, it is closely guarded by so many years and layers of "policy" that no one really knows "why"...it just *is*.  And how dare we try to buck that?

HSLDA would have the resources to point you in the right direction.  Heaven knows I'd be willing to get on board with whatever can be done!

Answer 8

Perhaps you should contact hslda.  http://www.hslda.org

What do you hope to gain from joining this organization?

Edited - that makes sense.  Yes, I would pursue it.  See if hslda can help.