Northwest to establish non-traditional student honor society chapter

When many Americans imagine a typical college student they think of a young, single person in his or her late teens who lives in a residence hall, studies in the library, hangs out with friends in the student union, and maybe goes out on Friday night for pizza and a movie.

While such stereotypes may still roughly apply to many students, a growing number of those seeking undergraduate degrees at Northwest and other U.S. institutions of higher learning confront a very different reality.

These days, many students enter college as full-fledged adults who must balance their pursuit of a college degree with the responsibilities of raising a family and working a full-time job.

In order to recognize and support such non-traditional students, Northwest has sought and received membership in the Alpha Sigma Lambda National Honor Society, a non-profit organization devoted to the advancement of adult learners in higher education.

Through its 300 campus chapters, Alpha Sigma Lambda seeks to recognize the special achievement of students who demonstrate academic excellence while discharging their many obligations to spouses, children, employers and communities.

“We are very pleased that Northwest has been accepted as an Alpha Sigma Lambda member,” said Jackie Elliott, vice president for student affairs. “We haven’t really had anything that recognized our non-traditional students, and this is a great opportunity to honor those who excel academically while fulfilling many other challenging responsibilities.”

Northwest now joins with other ASL colleges and universities who recognize their students’ major contributions in the areas of non-traditional student leadership, scholarship and academic achievement. The University will be home to the Xi Alpha chapter, which, over the next few weeks, will invite both student and faculty candidates to become society members during an April induction ceremony.

To be eligible for ASL membership, students must:

Have completed at least 24 graded semester hours of academic credit, or the equivalent, and have status as matriculated students in an undergraduate degree program.
Have earned at least 12 credit hours in courses related to the liberal arts and sciences.
Stand within the highest 10 percent of the class of students at their institution who have 24 graded credit hours, and who are matriculated in an undergraduate degree program.
Have a minimum grade-point average of 3.2 on a 4.0 scale.

For more information about Alpha Sigma Lambda National Honor Society, e-mail Elliott at jackiee@nwmissouri.edu or go to the ASL Web site at www.alphasigmalambda.org.

For more information, please contact:

Anthony Brown,
News Bureau Manager
E-Mail: abrown@nwmissouri.edu
Phone: 660.562.1704
Fax: 660.562.1900

Northwest Missouri State University
219 Administration Building,
800 University Drive
Maryville, MO 64468

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