Caroline Wilkerson ~ Staff Writer
On Dec. 8th, 73 students were inducted into the National Society of Leadership and Success (NSLS).
Secretary of NSLS, Jasmine Duff, said, “The NSLS induction encompassed the leadership and successes of many of our students. I am a part of this society to help these students grow into the leaders they are and to help them reach their full potential.”
The ceremony took place in the Westover Room in Drysdale on Sunday afternoon. Faculty, staff, parents, and friends all joined to celebrate the inductees’ accomplishments.
President of the University of Lynchburg’s chapter of NSLS, said, “First I would like to congratulate all of you on this outstanding accomplishment. Your hard work has paid off.”
The NSLS chapter at the University of Lynchburg was established in spring 2017 and currently has 444 students.
According to the University website, “The National Society of Leadership and Success is the nation’s largest leadership honor society. Second-Year students at the University of Lynchburg are invited for membership in the Lynchburg chapter of NSLS based on their academic standing and leadership potential. To accept membership, students complete a series of on-campus and online training programs to build their leadership skills. Members also receive access to NSLS scholarships and awards, ongoing training opportunities, employer recruitment through an online job bank, and other benefits.”
The induction consists of four major elements: orientation, leadership training day, success networking team (SNT) meetings, and speaker broadcasts. Every student must complete the following in order to be inducted into the society.
At the ceremony, the keynote speaker was Dr. Aaron Smith who is the University’s vice president and dean for student development. He said, “Leadership is something I am very passionate about.” He continued, the three major qualities essential in leadership are vision-casting, delegation, and climate control.
Inductees were asked to participate through Dean Smith’s speech, and one inductee even won a copy of Dean Smith’s book on leadership called, “So I’m a Leader, Now What?”
Anthony McAvoy, NSLS member and SNT leader, said, “Dr. Smith’s speech was inspiring and gave a lot of great tips on how to be a leader!”
Following Dean Smith’s speech, inductees received their NSLS certificates, and were officially named a member of the University of Lynchurg’s chapter of NSLS.
McAvoy continued, “I was very excited to see all of the students I worked with this semester get inducted. I was super proud of all of them as they have all worked very hard to get here and each and every one of them are amazing individuals that I was able to get to know and work with!”
