More than 500 OSU Institute of Technology students are nominated to join the National Society of Leadership and Success for the fall 2021 semester.

A program under Student Life, the NSLS is the nation's largest leadership honor society with more than 700 chapters and over 1.2 million members. Membership into this prestigious honor society is by invitation only. The program targets students who have at minimum six completed credit hours and at least a 2.75 GPA.

Students nominated received an invitation letter via email and to their home address. The deadline to join NSLS is Sept. 17.

This semester's speaker events include Gabrielle Union, Sheryl Sandberg, His Holiness the Dalai Lama and President Bill Clinton.

"These speakers offer a benefit to students in a few ways," said Kamie Crawford, director of Student Life and NSLS chapter adviser. "First, it allows them to hear the story of these well-known individuals' journeys to success. Not every story is the same, but many students can find that it's not just success and notoriety that these individuals have, but hard work, determination and grit. It's also important for students to hear and listen to topics of conversation that they might not have seen through that viewpoint. These events allow for critical thinking to take place with each student and provide a space for them to determine their thoughts and feelings on many topics."

Orientation events will take place Sept. 21 and 23 at 6 p.m. in the Covelle Hall Auditorium. Registered members need only attend one night.

Students who have been invited may join NSLS by submitting a nomination code received through an invitation and pay a one-time membership fee of $95 directly to the organization.

OSUIT offered a need-based waiver that will cover the cost of membership for 20 students this semester. The waivers will also be available to eligible nominees for the spring 2022 semester.

The membership includes access to scholarships and awards, an online job bank, member newsletter, broadcast speaker archive, online job bank, success talks, Motivational Mondays, success coaches, partner benefits and discounts.

The program is a journey of self-discovery and soft skill training laid out in steps to become an inducted member. Upon induction, there are additional leadership certifications that students can strive for and continuing leadership opportunities in assisting with future facilitation of the program on campus as student mentors and ambassadors.

"I've seen a simple impact in the way [NSLS] teaches students to communicate more effectively with each other, to a major impact in allowing a student to receive a promotion at their job because of the goals and implementation of the knowledge gained in this program," Crawford said. "Students, in general, can gain a sense of their communication style, and how that differs from others; but more importantly, how to work with those different styles and create a support team because of the differences."

The fall 2021 induction ceremony will be held Dec. 14 at 4 p.m. in Covelle Hall. A student will need to complete the program by attending and/or participating in four main activities and training within one semester to reach induction: orientation, Leadership Training Day, three speaker series broadcasts and three Success Networking Team Meetings.

Once inducted, the student will receive a member T-shirt and pin, additional awards and scholarships. A stole and honor cords for graduation can be purchased on the NSLS webpage, and personalized letters of recommendation are available to any inducted member.

"Students who join will walk through a program that will teach them more about their personality and passions and leading others. But it will also open the door to many opportunities to hone in on and practice the soft skills needed in a long-term career in industry," Crawford said.

NSLS is the only accredited honor society in the United States. The program is accredited by Cognia and recommended by the National College Credit Recommendation Service and the American Council on Education.

For additional questions or details about the program, visit the OSUIT NSLS page or contact Kamie Crawford at osuitnsls@okstate.edu.