May 14, 2026, Seward Folly by Jen Ransom
Nine students were inducted into Seward High School National Honor Society (NHS) on April 30. A formal ceremony was held for family, staff, and friends at the Seward High School theater.
Junior Axel LaRock, also a member of the SHS Book Club, proud of the accomplishments that led him to enter the Seward High School National Honor Society.
Juniors Axel LaRock, Ellie Rodriguez, Abigail Schilling, Lukas Scott, and Lia Shank, and sophomores Kirra DesErmia, Isabel Jones, Hannah Leatherman, and Alta Liljemark joined an already robust chapter of NHS during a formal ceremony highlighting the chapter’s dedication to character, scholarship, service, and leadership. These four qualities are the pillars of NHS, a prestigious high school national organization that recognizes high school students who embody these pillars. At the ceremony, current NHS members spoke to what each of those pillars represents and how NHS members are expected to exemplify these traits.
“A willingness to work for the benefit of those in need, without monetary compensation or public recognition, is the quality we seek in our membership,” explained junior Addison Gerlach, who, along with her service mindset, has won several awards in the district’s Battle of the Books contest and state cheer competitions.
Seward’s NHS participates in several service activities each year, which includes supporting He Will Provide Food Bank, the Seward Fire Department Angel Tree Project, and the organization’s own ongoing project creating yearly Valentine’s cards and cookies for Mountain Haven residents and senior citizens who receive local meal delivery.
NHS members Amara Ransom and Maddie Haas assemble Valentine’s Day cookies and cards for Seward’s senior citizens earlier this school year.
Lukas Scott, a new student at Seward High this year, jumped into a service-minded role from his first days at SHS, volunteering countless hours as the Seahawk mascot and also combining his love for photography and film into time spent volunteering to take photos at numerous SHS events.
“I feel a lot of pride being invited to be an NHS member,” said Scott, who recently participated in his first on-stage drama production as “Two Bit” in this spring’s Seward Theater Collective play, “The Outsiders.”
Hannah Leatherman, a sophomore at Seward High, began her high school career participating in and winning the Caring for the Kenai contest last year. Her project idea was an innovative way to mix asphalt in a way that prevents black ice buildup. She later visited the Alaska Senate Transportation Committee to showcase her idea. When asked what she is looking forward to most as a new member of NHS, she replied she is “just excited to be a part of it all and have the experience” of being part of the oldest student recognition program in the nation.
Senior Somi Clendaniel is a long-standing member of NHS who recently won the prestigious national Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Scholarship. She took a moment to share with Seward Folly what being part of National Honor Society has meant to her.
“I’ve really found a way to serve my community,” Clendaniel explained. “I’ve enjoyed being around people who are like-minded.”
Lucy Bamford, a 12-year senior who was inducted into NHS her sophomore year after also placing in the Caring for the Kenai contest her freshman year, reflected on her most memorable experience with the organization.
“I think what I liked the most was shopping for the Angel Tree project,” reflected Bamford, who helped raise money for the program and then joined several members in purchasing multiple gifts for Seward youth. “I’ve always shopped for an Angel Tree gift with my mom, but it was so nice to do it as a group, to get to shop for a bunch of kids all at once.”
Students must meet rigorous academic requirements to be invited to apply for National Honor Society membership. Students are also encouraged to participate in individual service projects throughout their high school career, along with the requirement to participate in group service projects each year.
Junior Abigail Schilling lights her own induction candle from the ceremonial Light of Knowledge. Schilling is the yearbook editor at Seward High School this year.
Sophomore Alta Liljemark ceremoniously receives the Light of Knowledge. When she first learned about how the induction ceremony is conducted across the nation, she smiled with an enthusiastic exclamation of “it’s just like the movie Dead Poets Society!”
Seniors in the organization will graduate with honors at the Seward High School graduation ceremony on May 19 at 7 p.m. at Seward High School.
Seward High School National Honor Society members line up for a group photo after this year’s induction ceremony.
(Photos by Amara Ransom)
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