The Post Ellipsis chapter of the National English Honor Society at Huntington High School inducted 33 new members during a Tuesday evening ceremony in the auditorium.
To be considered for NEHS membership a student must have a minimum academic grade average of 90, “exhibiting an impressive breadth of academic excellence,” while maintaining an English grade of at least 94.
The new inductees include Layna Abraham, Riley Ackerman, Melvin Avelar-Romero, Lily Froggatt Bale, Kayleigh Bender, Jane Callery, Samuel Cirlincione, Benjamin Edgar-McNerney, Deanna Elvir, Keylis Flores-Velasquez, Thomas Girimonti, Charlotte Gordon, Marley Joseph, Sophia Kaloudis, Sophie Lange, Donna Lazo-Cuchels, Tessie Maerz, Keyla Maldonado, Andrea Mani-Munoz, Damaris Mani-Munoz, Mary Marinello, Caroline McGreevy, Ruby Meidenman, Kathryn Montefusco, Riley Murtagh, Jordana Paniccia, Brooke Parks, Olivia Polinsky, Reese Rinaldi, Kaylee Splendorio, Lily Tierney, Ava Tizzio and Karla Velasquez.
The new members expanded the group’s ranks to 112. The organization is led President Ally Kustera, Vice President Caelyn Clayton, Treasurer Mary Grace Rorke, Secretary Sarah Berry and Public Relations Coordinator Anna Bell Young. English teachers Aimee Antorino and Helen Guarino serve as the faculty advisors.
A crowd of family members and friends turned out for the induction, along with high school and district officials and members of Huntington’s Board of Education.
Officers called the inductees one-by-one to the stage and presented each of them with a membership certificate. The members are now expected to participate in the society’s many volunteer activities.
Huntington’s Post Ellipsis chapter annually inducts at least one honorary member. This year the organization inducted Huntington High School social studies teacher Lauren Desiderio, who sat on the stage with executive board members and the faculty advisors.
The new members formally entered NEHS ranks during a ceremony that saw each of the teenagers light and hold a candle as they stood before the stage in the auditorium.
The inductees were required to recite the following pledge: “As a member of the National English Honor Society, I shall endeavor to advance the study of all areas of English and to foster a spirit of fellowship among students excelling in all facets of the English Language Arts, ever keeping in mind our national motto as our guiding principle: Gelast Sceal Mid Are–duty goes with honor.”
“The motto represents one of the earliest forms of our language; it affirms and celebrates an obligation to use one’s gifts in service to others,” according to the NEHS website. “Service to peers, school, and community are part and parcel of the NEHS mission and, indeed, in the grammatical structure of the Old English phrase, ‘duty’ actually proceeds ‘honor.’”
A reception was held immediately following the ceremony for students and their parents in the lobby outside the auditorium.
