The National Society of Leadership and Success (NSLS) is a national leadership honor society with a motto and goal of “building leaders who make a better world.” A chapter of the organization was founded at Conn in 2019. Dean Norbert is the staff advisor, but a group of students who found the organization and became passionate about it were the ones who started it at Conn. These students initially worked with the Dean of Academic Support, Noel Garrett.
Founded in 2001 by motivational speaker Gary Tuerack, The National Society of Leadership and Success is aimed at college students with a goal of helping them “identify career goals, hone their leadership skills and turn ambitions into action,” according to their website. The organization has over 1.5 million members and over 700 chapters across the country.
Starting in early February, many first-years and sophomore students have been receiving emails and letters from NSLS with information about the organization, and how they’ve been “nominated.” Conn’s criteria to be nominated for the organization is being in good community standing and having at least a 3.0 GPA. Additionally, only first-years and sophomores were nominated.
A Zoom meeting was held on March 1 as an opportunity for prospective members to ask questions. Advisor Dean Norbert, President Emily Siegel ‘22, and Chapter Support Manager JaCorey Calloway were there to answer questions and talk about the opportunities NSLS can provide. The main idea they discussed was how NSLS provides opportunities for leadership growth. Additionally, they hold many speaker broadcast events with impressive guests. Some notable speakers have been former President Barack Obama, former President George W. Bush, Bill Gates and Anderson Cooper. Other perks available to members of NSLS include access to scholarships, letters of recommendation, a job board and social events and networking.
Siegel initially joined in the fall of her junior year (2020) and has since found it “very beneficial.” She said that it is nice to work with other students who have similar mindsets. Siegel, like many students today, initially believed it was a scam, but after talking to Dean Garrettt who told her it was “a new program that just came to expand people’s leadership skills,” she decided to sign up. As president she is trying to make it an enjoyable experience, and help people get a lot out of it.
To accept one’s nomination and become initiated into NSLS students must pay a one time fee of $95 dollars, however Dean Norbert said that there are options through the school if people are interested but are facing a cost barrier. Also mandatory is an orientation, a leadership training day, three meetings with your “success networking team” and three speaker broadcasts. The success networking teams are there to help students hold each other accountable with their goals.
Something not listed on their main website, but mentioned by Calloway is that there are different membership tiers, each with more benefits, these go from the “Foundations of Leadership” $95 level, to“Advanced and Executive Leadership” for $165, then for $225, the “Advanced and Executive Leadership – College Credits Bundle.” These are each one time payments for lifetime membership. The second tier gives members the opportunity to “mentor others” in NSLS, “develop skills to have your voice heard and create positive change,” provides “real world experience” in a “Better World project,” gives them an “executive letter of recommendation” and “3 leadership certifications.” Then, the highest level gives an opportunity to “earn 4 college credits towards your degree,” one-on-one mentorship with educational coaches and professors, and even more leadership workshops and events.
The National Society of Leadership and Success is not a non-profit organization, though they do have the NSLS Foundation that is a registered non-profit, which is where they accept donations. Because the actual leadership society is not a non-profit, there is not a ton of information about where the money that students pay to join is going. Some of it goes towards paying speaker fees. Calloway also mentioned that members receive an “induction package” with a shirt, pin and diploma.
During the informational Zoom meeting, Dean Norbert explained how he liked the opportunity NSLS gave students to develop leadership skills and hear speakers that Conn would not have access to alone; he noted the larger opportunities, networking and conferences as well. He also stressed that he has “no skin in the game,” his only connection to this organization is students being passionate about it; and there is “zero pressure for involvement here.” Many students want opportunities for leadership growth, and this is a possible route for that.
NSLS is not accredited by the main honor society accreditation organization, the Association of College Honor Societies (ACHS), and is a for-profit organization. Most respected honor societies are non-profits, and ACHS states a “lack of non-profit status” can be a sign of an uncredible organization. Along with being a for-profit organization, NSLS does not provide any financial disclosures – what exactly they are doing with the money they receive. An additional guideline they list is that undergraduate leadership societies generally accept the upper 35% of a class, which usually “converts to a 3.2 or 3.3 GPA in most cases – 3.0 is likely too low in this age of grade inflation.” The only information on NSLS’s website about membership requirements is that “nomination criteria is determined by local Chapter Leaders and is based on GPA and/or leadership potential.” They are accredited by other organizations, Cognia and the National College Credit Recommendation Service. These do not ordinarily accredit honors societies, and are more focused on education.
NSLS is, however, a certified B Corporation which means they must have good “social and environmental performance,” accountability and transparency. They were the first honor society to seek this certification in 2016. Answering a question about the legitimacy of the NSLS, Membership Experience Specialist Stephanie Pile explained that “B Corporations are a new type of company that combines the purpose and mission of a non-profit with the flexibility of a for-profit.” She also said that “It is in the best interest of our partner schools for us to be a for-profit organization because we are able to reinvest our profits in the business for member benefits. This enables us to keep our technology cutting edge, our content updated, and our National Office fully staffed to better meet our chapter and member needs. Furthermore, it allows us more freedom to provide member benefits, such as over $350,000 in scholarships and grants. Finally, as a for-profit institution, we do not compete with our partner schools for critical Federal support.”
The question being asked on Conn’s campus is whether or not NSLS is a scam, and if it is worth joining. The answer to this question depends on the person, NSLS follows through on what they promise, so whether that is worth it or not is what students should decide.
