Career Tech students can qualify for membership in National Technical Honor Society after completing the first year of their Career Tech program and meeting the NTHS membership requirements.
NTHS offers lifetime membership for a nominal fee. Membership distinguishes a prospective employee as one who focuses above expectation and strives for excellence in academics, technical skills, and character.
NTHS nominees maintain membership in their Career Tech Student Organization, continuously exemplify the seven attributes of NTHS (see below), maintain a 3.25 GPA, demonstrate excellent character, discipline and attendance, have maintained a 90 average in their Career Tech program, passed CPAS or national certification tests, and are recommended by their Career Tech teacher.
The NTHS Seven Attributes
SKILL: Possessing competency and aptitude in a craft, trade, or job.
HONESTY: The quality of being truthful, trustworthy, and genuine in all your interactions, both socially and professionally..
SERVICE: Contributing your time, effort, and skills to help others and your community.
RESPONSIBILITY: Being accountable and upholding commitments to others and yourself.
SCHOLARSHIP: Dedication to high-level preparation and achievement in your area of study.
CITIZENSHIP: Supporting, nurturing, and actively participating in the communities to which you belong.
LEADERSHIP: The ability to inspire and guide others to work towards achieving a common goal.
Harrison County Career & Technical Center is a proud charter of The National Technical Honor Society. It is among 3,700 charter schools and colleges with more than 50,000 students enrolled in career and technical education each year.
The mission of the National Technical Honor Society is to honor student achievement and leadership, promote educational excellence, and enhance career opportunities for the NTHS membership.
Membership Requirements:
Member of Career Tech Student Organization
3.25 overall GPA
90 average in the career & technical program
Excellent character, attendance, and leadership
Career & Technical teacher recommendation
Click the carrot to access NTHS Scholarship information
2024 NTHS Scholarship Applications
Scholarship Open Date Close Date
DECA September 11 January 1
BYF (Construction Industries) September 15 March 8
TSA December 1 April 1
HOSA December 1 April 15
SkillsUSA January 12 April 15
Jon H. Poteat September 1 May 1
Member Benefits include
- NTHS Scholarship Opportunities
- Letters of Recommendation
- Membership Recognition including a certificate of achievement, official NTHS diploma seal, membership pin, membership card, graduation tassel and window decal
- Important career and professional recognition by education business and industry
- Online career center access with resume tools and job connections
- Recruitment opportunities to top US Colleges and Corporations
- Member discounts for GEICO, STEM Premier and more
For additional information, contact Mrs. Maddox, National Technical Honor Society Advisor, at 228-832-6652 or [email protected]
************************************************************************************************************************************
History and Benefits of NTHS
What is National Technical Honor Society all about? NTHS is an honor society
dedicated to recognizing excellence in career and technical education.
The NTHS Mission is: To honor student achievement and leadership in career and
technical education, promote educational excellence, award scholarships, and
enhance career opportunities for the NTHS membership.
The NTHS Vision is: To be the international leader in providing recognition for
excellence in career and technical education.
The organization serves over 4,000 schools, including high schools, career tech
centers, community colleges and private institutions. With the home office based in North
Carolina, there are over 350 chapters. The national headquarters is located in Flat
Rock, across the street from the campus of Blue Ridge Community College. NTHS
has chapters in all 50 states, Guam, American Samoa, Puerto Rico and the
Bahamas.
So, how and why did NTHS get started? Here’s a brief history of the organization.
The story of NTHS began in 1984 in Inman, South Carolina, at the H.B.
Swofford Career Center. Center Director Allen Powell and guidance counselor Jon
Poteat saw a critical need to bring recognition to skilled students, and to overturn
the negative image of vocational and technical education. Fueled by a compelling
desire to recognize their deserving students and build a stronger, more positive
image for their programs and school, National Vocational-Technical Honor Society
was founded in December of 1984. Chapter 0001 is H.B. Swofford Career Center.
Mr. Powell and Mr. Poteat continued to promote NV-THS, build a Board of
Directors, and enlist schools and sponsors. Gradually, career-tech centers, high
schools and colleges joined forces with the Society. They too wanted to recognize
their high-achieving students and build a better image for their students and
schools.
In 1999, NV-THS relocated to the campus of Blue Ridge Community College. In
2003, the National Board of Directors unanimously agreed to change the name of
the organization from the National Vocational-Technical Honor Society to the
National Technical Honor Society to reflect the views of business and industry
toward students in skilled trades.
The current headquarters on Airport Road in Flat Rock was built in 2007 on land purchased from the BRCC Foundation, just across the street from the college. The staff of 10 is led by the Executive Director, Allen Powell. Mr. Poteat
passed away in 2000, and the Jon H. Poteat Scholarship was founded in his name and
memory.
Our scholarship history is pretty amazing. In 1997, NTHS Board Member Steve
Greene gave the first $1000 needed to start a scholarship account with the
Spartanburg County Foundation. For the next eight years, the growth of the fund
depended entirely on donations from board, friends and fundraising efforts.
In 2005, NTHS awarded the first scholarships. That year, only four $500
scholarships were awarded, but that was just the beginning.
Just two short years later, in 2007, a total of $25,000 in scholarship monies went to
NTHS members.
To date, NTHS has awarded over $2 million dollars in scholarships, between our
own Jon H. Poteat scholarship, our partnered Career-Tech student organizations,
and through our Alumni Association.
So, how do students become NTHS members and take advantage of scholarships
and other benefits?
Membership dues are a one-time fee. Students must meet the
criteria of having an overall minimum required GPA and program average, must complete a 2-year Career Tech program, and must
be a current member of their Career Tech Student Organization. Student member candidates must also embody the 7 attributes of
NTHS – Leadership, Scholarship, Skills, Honesty, Citizenship, Service and
Responsibility.
Member benefits include a newly designed custom portfolio, which has an ID
card, custom certificate, white tassel with NTHS drop, lapel pin, window decal and
a seal to be affixed to their certificate or diploma at graduation.
Members can log in and apply for our scholarships, as well as request letters of
recommendation and use our online career center. In 2016, our board approved
scholarships totaling over a quarter-million dollars.
The recent partnership with Express Pro Staffing offers our members a series
of free videos to assist them with finding job opportunities, resume writing and
interviewing skills.
Letters of recommendation are a very powerful benefit. Members can download
and print a general letter of recommendation for their portfolio, as well as
request custom letters to be used when applying for a job, a scholarship or to a
college. Letters are signed by our executive director and sent to whom the
member specifies. It’s powerful when they go in for an interview, and the
interviewer already has a letter of recommendation from a national organization!
To recap what NTHS is about…
NTHS helps schools to:
• Offer additional scholarship opportunities to CTE students.
• Communicate a strong, positive image in the local community.
• Attract and recruit qualified, diverse students into CTE programs.
• Build active partnerships with and promote students to local industry.
• Recognize outstanding leaders and educators through the NTHS Hall of
Fame.
• Encourage parental, family, and industry involvement in the educational
process.
• Foster self-esteem, pride, responsibility, and community involvement in
students.
NTHS helps members to:
• Seek postsecondary education by awarding over a quarter of a million
dollars in scholarships annually.
• Position themselves ahead of competition in today’s highly competitive
workforce.
• Build career portfolios with professional letters of recommendation.
• Connect to global career and technical education networks.
• Discover opportunities with leading business and industry.
• Serve in leadership roles in communities and industries.
And most importantly . . .
NTHS helps members be recognized for their achievement in career and technical
education.
NTHS members range from high school students, to college level students, to older
students who have gone back to school to pursue a different career path. It is
truly gratifying to see children watch their parents get inducted into NTHS. And
it’s really wonderful when parents and children are both NTHS members at the
same campus!
Several years ago, one of the NTHS/HOSA scholarship winners was an older lady
who had gone back to school to pursue a degree in phlebotomy. Part of her
training was going on an ambulance ride-along and she was so excited after that,
she changed her major to pursue a career as an EMT. Our scholarship helped her
to realize that goal. It is always wonderful to hear the “personal” side of NTHS
membership.