The Honor Societies at Brandon Academy

There are so many ways that the students of Brandon Academy show how awesome they are. We have amazing athletes, artists, singer, actors and we always work hard to make sure they have a place to share and grow those talents. However, the area that the students of Brandon Academy shine the most is in the classroom. Let’s stop for a bit and celebrate our amazing students and everything they accomplish in their most important setting.

NATIONAL ELEMENTARY HONOR SOCIETY (LOWER SCHOOL)

Last week, thirty-eight 4^th and 5^th grade students made history here at Brandon Academy when they were inducted into our brand new chapter of the National Elementary Honor Society.  Their selection was based on four criteria.  Students had to have at least a 3.0 grade point average so Scholarship was the first consideration.  In addition, students had to submit an application showing examples of their Responsibility, Service and Leadership. Note that these criteria are set by the national organization and not by Brandon Academy. How is it possible that so many Brandon Academy students achieve this distinction? Academic Excellence is the answer. Read more below for how this is accomplished.

The inaugural NEHS induction ceremony was held in the Brandon Academy Student Life Center.  These new members will participate in community service under the guidance of the NEHS advisor, Mrs. Vanermine.

Congratulations to the following students:

Grace Britt                            Ben Chabalowski                 Jay Chaplot

Olivia Davis                           Colin Enos                            Alyssa Fraser

Carly Grey                             Katarina Grubbs                  Devin Hart     

Jordan Hassoun                   Isabel Hernandez                Jonah Honrado

Khai Jackson-Mitchell         Jade Jannarone                   Antonio Kapusta

Camdyn Karch                      Tzak Ying Lau                       Alexander Lawler

Michael McAllister              Keira McGrath                     Eli Mishkin

Madeline Mitchell               Riley Mook                           Nigel Osceola

Shayan Patel                         Sebastian Roman                Sam Schneider

McKenna Smith                    Adler Stone                         Laina Sutton

Michelle Swain                     Abhilasha Tammineedi      Pranav Tammineedi

Cooper Whitney                   Logan Young                        Adan Zahidi

Hannah Zink                          Preston Zink

NATIONAL JUNIOR HONOR SOCIETY (MIDDLE SCHOOL)

On March 15,2016, twenty-one 6^th, 7^th and 8th^th grade students were inducted into the Carolyn Alesandrini Chapter of the National Junior Honor Society. Their selection was based on five criteria.  Students had to have at least a 3.0 grade point average so Scholarship was the first consideration.  In addition, students had to submit an application showing examples of  their Character, Service, Citizenship  and Leadership. Just as is the case for NEHS, the criteria for NJHS are set by the national organization and not by Brandon Academy. How is it possible that so many Brandon Academy students achieve this distinction? Academic Excellence is the answer. Read more below for how this is accomplished.

The induction ceremony took place in our Student Life center. New members will join or existing members in completing service projects on and off campus.

Congratulations to the following newly inducted NJHS members:  

Deon Armes                         Jayden Avecillas                    Zander Badger

Paul Bryant                           William Chabalowski           Abhishek Dave’

Cole Davis                             Lillian Erwin                          Anisya Gonzalez

Charity Johnson                   Tikir Jahmai-Steele              Christian Karchurak

Tzak Sing Lau                        Joshua Lewis                         Chris Muratti

Melissa Olsen                       CJ Perez                                 Kaniya Robinson

Aidan Rudolph                     Nola Stone                            Casey Sutton

Current Members (37)

8^th Graders:

Liam Ackels                          Ben Ayres                             Jack Ayres

Nikita Bandarupalli            Abby Caballero                    Kaitlyn Campbell

Ishan Chaplot                      Daniella Curatelli                Richard Cusack

Aaron Davila                        Elias Dones                          Ramsey Hassoun

Patrick Kohel                       Ryan McCranie                    Katie Muratti

Kaylee Rodriguez                Victoria Rudolph                 Sydney Smith-Dill

Audrey Stecher                   Ved Verma                           Kaiden Whitney

7^th Graders:

Allison Barfield                    Marquis Berkhall                Marquez Berkhall

Angelina Curatelli               Julia DeMik                          David Erwin

Noah Galzerano                  Dean Hotz                            Garrett Hudak

Ethan Jennings                    Bailee Lawrence                 Sarah Leybovich

Laila Moursi                         Rheeya Patel                       Esha Saini

Aidan Sevintuna

NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY (HIGH SCHOOL)

Of course, both of the above honor societies are the precursors to the high school version, which is called the National Honor Society. The NHS allows induction of members beginning the spring of the sophomore year; therefore, our BAHS students will be eligible next school year. Similar to NJSH, our high school students will have to have at least a 3.0 grade point average to meet the Scholarship requirement.  In addition, students will have to submit an application showing examples of their Character, Service, Citizenship and Leadership. Just as is the case for NEHS and NJSH, the criteria for NHS are set by the national organization and not by Brandon Academy.

We look forward to inducting our first ever high school students into this prestigious national organization in the spring of 2017.

What does this suggest about Brandon Academy and our students?

As you can see, at Brandon Academy academic excellence is the norm. Our students strive for academic excellence and expect the same from their peers. One of the main advantages that our school offers our students is a peer group that supports and encourages each other to be good students and leadership. We congratulate our students on their hard work and accomplishments and thank them for supporting and encouraging each other to be the best they can be!

HOW DO WE ACHIEVE THIS AMAZING RESULT?
How is it possible that so many BA students meet these national criteria? Well, there are multiple reasons.

1.  It starts on the front end with our admissions process. Recall that every student in our school had to undergo a rigorous admissions process that included a thorough review of prior academic history and behavior, individual academic testing, interviewing, etc. Only students who are deemed capable of being successful in our rigorous curriculum are offered admission.
2.  Once admitted, our exceptional teaching staff works diligently with our students to ensure their academic progress and success. Brandon Academy hires only highly qualified teachers with college course work in the subject that they are teaching. Once hired, teachers are mentored and closely supervised and supported by administration to ensure the Brandon Academy curriculum is delivered as designed.
3. Teachers implement a unique, Brandon Academy curriculum that is designed by the administration of Brandon Academy. We have never and will never use canned or fad curricula at Brandon Academy. Our curriculum is designed by educators. This curriculum ensures the most rigorous academic program possible and this program is constantly being evaluated and changed to meet the changing needs of our students and world.
4. But, of course, none of this would be possible without our incredible parents!
• BA parents seek out our school because of their high value of academic achievement. 
• They want the very best educational experience for the children and come to BA for us to provide it.
• Once their children are here, they work in partnership with our staff to ensure that their children are successful.
• They make sure their children attend school regularly and arrive on time. They check the assignment pads and REMIND app to be sure their children are doing their homework and studying for tests. When they notice an area that their child is struggling, they alert their child’s teacher so that additional support is offered in that area to allow the child to find success.
• The list of ways our parents support the learning of their children is endless.

It is through this partnership of awesome students, exceptional teachers and administrators and incredible parents that the students of Brandon Academy have and will continue to excel nationally in every way possible.