National Honor Society For Dance Arts

The National Honor Society for Dance Arts (NHSDA) is one of the most exciting programs NDEO offers to members teaching dance in any private or public middle or high school, dance school/academy, performing arts center, or community center with an active dance program serving students 11-18 years of age. The primary goals of the NHSDA are: (1) to promote and honor outstanding achievement in students 11-18 years of age studying dance; (2) to encourage well-rounded young dance artists to be leaders in their communities; and (3) to identify honor students of junior and senior high school age for nomination to the National Dance Education Organization’s Artistic Merit, Leadership, and Academic Achievement Award, one of the highest honors programs in the United States.

The role of the NDEO State Affiliate is critical in the implementation of NHSDA in that it serves as the primary point of contact with the Chapter Sponsors within the state. The State Affiliate’s responsibilities include:

• Issuing chapters to applicant schools
• Issuing induction certificates to eligible students
• Communicating with school and school district administrators about NHSDA chapters
• Serving as the state-level contact for information about NHSDA
• Maintaining a database of state NHSDA chapters and student inductees
• Providing data about state chapters to NDEO
• Facilitating the state-level process of identifying applicants for the NDEO Artistic Merit, Leadership and Academic Achievement Award

This NHSDA State Affiliates Toolkit contains procedural guidelines for implementing NHSDA, as well as templates for the nationally-approved forms, sample letters, and other materials. State Affiliates also should utilize the NHSDA Chapter Sponsor Handbook to understand the duties and responsibilities of the individual Chapter Sponsors.

Please click here to download the complete Toolkit. 

Click here for the NHSDA online application for new Chapters and all Student Inductions.