Parent appeals National Honor Society denial; committee to review attendance criteria

A North Brookfield parent asked the School Committee on May 18 to reconsider her son’s exclusion from the National Honor Society and to clarify where attendance criteria are documented.

Danielle Man wrote to the committee that her son, Cooper, is a senior with a 3.4 grade-point average and “has demonstrated leadership, character, and service,” but that he was denied NHS induction after accruing 14 absences (eight excused, six unexcused). The family said the student handbook (pages 67–68) did not show an attendance requirement tied to NHS eligibility and called for transparency on whether bylaws were revised during the COVID era.

The superintendent, Tim McCormack, and administration said NHS national guidance does not specify an absenteeism standard and that local chapters may set different rules. Mr. Beck, an administrator, told the committee he was researching the chapter’s bylaws and the handbook language and expected to follow up with the Man family and the policy subcommittee soon. “I’ve begun printing out and researching both the bylaws and what’s in the handbook to be able to provide an answer to Miss Man,” Mr. Beck said.

Committee members agreed the matter was not for immediate committee adjudication but should be handled through the administration’s review and, where appropriate, the policy subcommittee. The committee asked that any attendance expectation tied to NHS be clearly published in the student handbook or chapter bylaws going forward so students and families can find the criteria.

Next steps: administration will report back with the handbook/bylaw documentation and an appeal outcome; the policy subcommittee will review whether handbook language needs revision.