Science National Honor Society was established alongside other subject-specific honor societies in the 1980s to recognize and encourage students to excel in their core classes.

“SNHS is a prominent scientific organization that will engender a new group of young thinkers who will be the future of industry, research, and science exploration in America.” sciencenhs.org states.

Schools can open their own chapters, a local unit that operates independently under the guidance of a national program of the Science National Honor Society.

Melissa Wyatt, one of Hernando’s Biology and only AP Biology teacher, began the Hernando High School chapter of the Science National Honor Society in 2022. She has only grown the program since then.

Wyatt emphasized, “Science National Honor Society is a way to honor, academically, students who excel specifically in the subject of science.”

For Wyatt, the program is about honoring the students who might not thrive in every subject but have a specific knack for the science field.

“This gives an opportunity for all students to shine in their specific academic area,” Wyatt stated.

Students must apply at the beginning of the school year to be considered as potential inductees, but after application, Wyatt reviews the students, ensuring each has met all of the expectations required by the society.

To be inducted into the society, students must maintain an overall unweighted GPA of 3.0, a science unweighted GPA of 3.5, and be actively enrolled or have taken AP or Honors science classes. This truly shows each inductee’s academic efforts.

Within the society, junior and senior representatives have been elected to aid in service and ceremonies.

Avery Robinson, a senior representative, says that her favorite part of the society is the inductions themselves.

“I love getting dressed up and helping everyone have the same experience that I did,” Robinson said.

The ceremony opened up with words from Principal Dwane Case and Wyatt, followed by a senior representative-led prayer and speech.

Following this, the representatives called out the names of the inductees, presenting them with their certificates, a button, and a glow stick.

The glowsticks were then broken to symbolize students using their scientific knowledge to “illuminate the world around them.”

Through Hernando’s chapter of the Science National Honor Society, students earn the opportunity to show their skills in the scientific field and use them to better their school’s community.