On May 19th at 5pm, students, faculty members and parents gathered in the Staples library to induct 50 new students into the National Honor Society for 2014-15.

After a musical interlude by Katie Zhou ’14 on the violin, Will Haskell ’14 and Katie Smith ’14 discussed symbols of the society. The four aspects that the members display are scholarship, service, leadership, and character.

Faculty speaker Cathy Dancz Schager, chosen by the senior members of the society to speak, started her speech with humor. “I’m Cathy and I’m a people pleasing, overachieving person,” said Schager.

After Schager warmed up the audience, she got into the heart of her speech.

“You’re here because you’re naturally gifted intellectually, [are in] an environment that allowed you to strive [and display] a strong work ethic,” said Schager.

Schager then brought up the main theme of her speech: balance.

“Learning to breathe and sit is actually a big deal… More and more things are going to enter the game [and] we’re not always given tools for self preservation,” explained Schager.

Schager transitioned to a second theme; taking action.

“I’m telling you both–don’t just sit there, do something and don’t just do something, sit there,” she said with a laugh.

“It’s really young people who have the ability and time to impact the world. Now is the time to stand up to people on Yik Yak or solve the crisis in Syria,” added Schager.

Schager ended her speech by summing up her themes.

“Constantly reevaluating yourself” is the key to finding the balance between sitting there and doing something, said Schager.

Inductees Megan Nuzzo ’15 and Jessica Shaw ’15 echo Schager’s speech when agreeing that all of their hard work and effort has paid off.

After applauding the names of the 50 inductees, the audience enjoyed refreshments, feeling inspired from Schager’s speech to embark on the rest of their journey in life.