With this school year’s National Honor Society elections completed on Friday, February 6th, the campaigning weeks have come to an end. These elections mark an exciting new year in NHS with our new leadership. As several students from grades 10 through 12 campaigned for office, campaign posters filled the school’s halls. Some candidates ran in pairs and others alone; these were the positions that needed to be filled: President, Vice President, Secretary, and Community Service Officer.
After interviews with the candidates before the elections began, many have confidence that they have what it takes, but are a little intimidated by the competition. Richard Park ran for Community Service Officer, and when asked if he was nervous, he responded, “Just a little bit. I know Colin Beckner is a respectable junior at Basis Independent Mclean, and I know he has a lot of great policies in mind.” On the other hand, both Shaurya Thakker, running for Secretary, and Ray Zand Husain, running for President, responded “No” when asked the same question.
With that background in mind, the inspiration for these candidates is varied, with Richard saying, “I look up to Shayan [Shaibani] as a good leader.” Our previous president, Shayan Shaibani, has clearly been looked up to as a role model by many of our candidates, reflecting the positive impact of his work. Ray Zand Husain [President] takes a more forward-looking perspective, and responds with “Every time I open the position log [Volunteer Opportunity Log], there are no positions available. People think of NHS as a chore. I want it to be a ‘Yes, I have NHS today!’” And lastly, Michael Philipov’s inspiration comes from one of his classmates, saying, “Some guy asked me to run.” With all inspirations being different, all of our candidates aim to improve our NHS community and structure.
Walking through the halls, students would definitely spot the many bright and colorful election posters. With some candidates choosing to just stick to the speech and deciding not to hang up posters, Shaurya Thakker [Secretary] wants to relate to his audience by including quotes from well-known celebrities, such as Tate McRae or Travis Scott, on his campaign posters. Ray takes a different approach, explaining that while other candidates clarify what they are going to do during their office, he aims to tell the school what he has done. Ann Han, Ray’s running mate for Vice President, explained that while she hasn’t held an NHS leadership position before, her commitment proves she will exceed expectations for the role.
After an intense few weeks of colorful posters and persuasive campaigning, the National Honor Society(NHS) has successfully elected its leadership for the upcoming year. The race started with speeches from prospective community service officers Richard Park and Colin Beckner. Reflecting on the event, Richard felt this speech “went very well” and was persuasive. Still, he noted how Colin had a more thorough and outlined agenda, ultimately making him the better candidate. As Richard predicted, Colin was elected as the community service officer.
Next, Shaurya Thakker, Anabella Tamayo, and Megan Tran battled it out for NHS secretary. One speech that many voters thought was innovative was Shaurya’s. He tied his innovative posters into his speech, connecting their meaning to his specific goals as secretary, referencing how(add smth). Shaurya felt his speech went very well because he delivered it entirely from memory. By avoiding notes, he got all his points across and even had a minute to spare, achieving his goal of keeping it concise. Megan, however, did not feel the same way after reflecting on her speech, explaining that she “talked too fast and was rushed.” She did believe she executed all her points, but felt nervous, thus not conveying her points the way she wanted to. The elections for secretary were especially exciting due to the tie in votes between Anabella and Shaurya, both receiving the same plurality of votes. Typically, in the NHS, to break the tie, a revote is cast. This was an unusual situation because Shaurya had left school before the elections concluded. In his absence, Anabella was elected as secretary.
Lastly, the most anticipated election of them all was for the leaders of the NHS, president and vice president (VP). There were three presidential and VP choices on the ballot. Angie Yu and Naomi Lee, Ray Zand Husian and Ann Han, and Michael Philipov and Ryan Xu. Angie highlighted how her current role in the NHS as a community service officer, facilitating communication among all members, would make her an ideal candidate for President. Ray took a more direct approach in his speech, calling out the current leadership for not updating the activity log. While talking to Ray after the elections, he thought his speech went okay and that he got all of his points across effectively. Finally, the prospective president and vice president, Michael Philipov and Ryan Xu, were beloved by many after their speeches. Meghan and Shuarya said she liked Michael’s speech because he was able to convey all his points effectively while maintaining humor throughout. Furthermore, Ray was fond of Shaury’s speech because of his “profound talent in public speaking” and charisma. In the end, Michael and Ryan were crowned president and vice president of NHS despite Michael noting that he was really nervous and “couldn’t feel his legs.” The election proved that while the competition was intense, the chapter is moving forward with a leadership team that has a clear commitment to the future of NHS.
Beyond the candidate’s own reflections, we spent some time talking to voters to hear their thoughts on the candidates’ preparedness and what they hope to see from the new leadership this year. For many voters, the choice came down to more than just fun posters; it was about finding leaders who were willing to prioritize community service. For instance, one student explained, “they were looking for a confident and communicative president”, because when she first entered the NHS, the organization’s true purpose was not effectively communicated to her. Another student mentioned that under this new leadership, she hopes there is “better communication on when events/meetings are.”
The general consensus among students was that they preferred candidates who had a clear outline of their goals as leaders of NHS instead of merely listing characteristics and achievements about themselves that would make them a good leader. By choosing leaders based on their specific goals, the members have ensured that the values of the National Honor Society will be upheld and that the organization is moving forward in the right direction.
