Mortar Board Honor Society Receives National Most Improved Award

Mortar Board National College Senior Honor Society announced that The University of Findlay chapter is the recipient of the Most Improved Chapter Award. Incoming chapter president Laura Nelson was present to accept the award at the Society’s national conference, held in Chicago in late July.
The Most Improved Chapter Award is presented annually to a chapter that has been most successful in re-establishing and re-invigorating their membership and programming practices. The recipient of this award must first be nominated, then is chosen by a committee for their success in the areas of new member selection, membership orientation and transition, chapter operations, community service and chapter visibility.
The leaders of The University of Findlay chapter set the goal of becoming Mortar Board’s most improved chapter for the 2011-2012 academic year. As a newer chapter, they did not have many established traditions or longstanding events. They hosted five large campus programs and contributed to another three. Some of these included bringing national speaker David Coleman to campus, participating in Homecoming festivities and co-hosting an “Honors after Hours” sports tournament that promoted membership to first- and second-year students. The chapter also decided to change its tapping process to make it more prestigious, which aligned with their objective of selecting only the most talented and qualified members.
Additionally, The University of Findlay group was one of only 31 chapters to take home the Golden Torch Award, presented to the most outstanding chapters of Mortar Board. Recipients must excel beyond minimum standards, accomplishing significant results in chapter management and contributing meaningful service to their institutions.
Mortar Board is the premier national honor society recognizing college seniors for outstanding achievement in scholarship, leadership and service. Since its founding in 1918, the Society has grown from four to 229 chartered collegiate chapters with more than a quarter-million members across the nation. The University of Findlay chapter was chartered in 2008 and currently has 30 members.
Mortar Board provides opportunities for continued leadership development, promotes service to colleges and universities and encourages lifelong contributions to the global community. Some notable Mortar Board members include pioneering engineer Lillian Gilbreth, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, Emmy-winning actor Rue McClanahan, astronauts Judith Resnik and Janice Voss, adventurer Aron Ralston and lifestyle expert Bruce Littlefield. Learn more about Mortar Board at www.mortarboard.org.