The Bedford High School Chapter of the National Honor Society (NHS) welcomed a new group of members on Thursday evening in the Buckley Auditorium at Bedford High School.
Seventy inductees from the junior and senior classes took a pledge to uphold the principles of the nationally-recognized organization’s pillars of scholarship, service, leadership, and character, joining the 39 current BHS students inducted in December 2022.
Thursday’s ceremony began with a procession of inductees into the high school auditorium, filled with an audience of hundreds of family members, school faculty, friends, and students. After an introduction, current NHS and Honors Choir members Ava Derderian and Cate Galante performed an acapella duet of the National Anthem to start the ceremony.
Bedford High School Principal Heather Galante welcomed and congratulated the students, families, and community. Galante explained to the inductees that this induction is an “important opportunity for the school community to recognize and celebrate your choices, sacrifices, and dedication.”
The common thread of choice, sacrifice, and dedication was carried through the evening’s speakers.
BHS Honor Society President Andrew Lum was joined by the group’s Vice President Kaylyn Sethakose, Secretary Harrison Sachs, and newly-inducted Treasurer Paul Caruso in lighting a candle. Each officer introduced one of the four pillars of the National Honor Society.
During the explanations of each pillar, new inductees were applauded for their past efforts and contributions to the school, but also reminded that being a member of NHS involves continuing to sacrifice time and energy, making choices to lead and serve, and committing to living honorably and strengthening communities wherever life may lead.
Lum announced each inductee by name, and the new members walked across the BHS stage where NHS Advisor Hermance Anna Septembre and Galante presented students with a pin, certificate, and handshake.
Septembre, in her third year as NHS advisor, explained that students are invited to apply to the BHS chapter of NHS if they maintained an unweighted GPA of 3.7 or higher during their sophomore and junior years. Applications, which include personal statements, teacher recommendations, examples of leadership, and a commitment to community service, are reviewed and accepted by a faculty review committee.
Once inducted, National Honor Society members serve as mentors and tutors within the school, volunteer within the school community and beyond, and are responsible for implementing a service project.
Septembre explained the importance of the program in highlighting the “achievements of our hardworking students as well as promoting the moral value of giving back to the community and helping others.”
Following the presentation of new members, Lum invited the group’s selected speaker, BHS instructor Richard Donnelly, to share congratulatory remarks. Donnelly began by explaining that when he was 17-years-old, he was not in Honor Society. He misunderstood NHS as a self-congratulatory group for students who only earned good grades, but as an adult and high school teacher, he now sees the organization as more. National Honor Society is not a reflective “pat on the back” of past accomplishments or talents, but a forward-thinking choice of character.
He shared with the audience that filling out the NHS application is “recognizing who you want to be when you leave high school and travel into the world.” And membership is a dedication “to live an honorable life.”
Donnelly shared a parable from his own life, tying inspiration from Voltaire’s Candide: “cultivate your own garden.” From teaching economics in the Ukraine during the 1990s, Donnelly found satisfaction in his dedication, commitment, and hard work in a small piece of the world. He felt his localized work contributed towards the larger effort of creating a free open democratic society.
Donnelly encouraged the students to use their oath of the NHS pillars, along with the concepts of choice, sacrifice, and dedication, to find their “own garden – work that will give you personal satisfaction and purpose.”
He again stressed the importance and the fulfillment that can come from choosing to dedicate oneself to something that can have an impact on a small part of a big world. And maintaining “faith that other people are doing the same” thereby making big impacts towards “an honorable society.”
The evening ended with photo opportunities with families and peers.
Students newly inducted into the Bedford High School Chapter of the National Honor Society include:
Class of 2024
Millie Bonneau, Paul Caruso, Katie Desaulniers, Rachael Hsu, Margaree Hybl, Reyna Matrona, Ryan McWalter, Cassie Morrison, Samantha Nappi, Lydia O’Neil, Anthony O’ Brien, Maya Pillai, Anthony Randazzo, Samantha Sheahan, Zachary Shen, Klara Stevens, Jane Stewart, Meghan Tassinari, Raaga Vakamalla, Cameron Zhu, Emily Zhu
Class of 2025
Jacob Beimel, Simon Bendersky, Charles Bing, Ryan Bowman, Giullia Caico, Gianna Carrier, Mauricio Dardon, Stella Day, Emma Dubrovskiy, Ani Eskandarian, Scarlett Evans, Spencer Goss, Amelia Gosselin, Violet Gould, Liam Green, Ariel Grossman, Finley Halloran, Kai Holland, Christina Hovnanian, Ishaan Kapuria, Amelie Kelly, Evangel Li, Vivian Liu, Caroline Luongo, Aliyah Lussier, Rhea Malhotra, Anna Massaro, Ryan McGrath, Hannah Messinger, John Mitchell, Arnav Munjal, Leonardo Natalizio, Grace Niu, Jennifer Noh, Madeleine Ota, Shreya Ramanathan, Roza Shaikh, Shreyes Shivappa, Diya Singh, Maya Singh, Bianca Tiwari, Owen Vasile, Emily Wang, Austin Wei, Zachary Wirth, Michelle Wong, Nadav Yaniv, Druthi Yuvaraj, Richard Zaloom
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