Academic Groups

Alter Scholars

Alter Scholars is a program designed to help students develop their academic, ethical, and cultural understanding of what it means to be a true scholar. Any freshman with a GPA of 3.6 or higher may apply at the beginning of the second semester.  Acceptance into the program is based on teacher recommendations and submitted essays.  Each year students are required to complete a variety of activities and reflect on what they have gained from participating in them.  Freshman year is focused on exploring what Alter has to offer.  Sophomore year’s emphasis is on ethics and what it means in the world of academia.  During a student’s Junior year, they will have opportunities to job shadow and make connections between their academic world and outside world.   Lastly, during Senior year Alter Scholars will concentrate on a particular field of study and work on their final Scholar’s project.

Moderator: Mrs. Jennifer Schlangen Jennifer.Schlangen@atlerhs.org

National Honor Society

The National Honor Society (NHS) is the nation’s premier organization established to recognize outstanding high school students. More than just an honor roll, NHS serves to recognize those students who have demonstrated excellence in the areas of scholarship, leadership, service, and character. The purpose of The Archbishop Alter High School Chapter of the National Honor society is to create enthusiasm for scholarship, to stimulate a desire to render service, to promote leadership, and to develop character.

Selection of Membership

  • Criteria: National Guidelines are followed. Applicants are rated in the qualities of (1) scholarship, (2) leadership, (3) service (4) extracurricular activities, and (5) character. All have equal weight. See Archbishop Alter NHS rating rubrics for specific criteria within each section. Applicants must achieve a minimum of 15 points to gain admission.
  • Minimum Standards: Students must have a 3.7 cumulative grade point average through the most recent grading period. Students must participate actively in school activities and/or community activities.
  • Selection Process: Students must submit a completed application, which is then reviewed by a selection committee comprised of several faculty members.
  • Moderators: Ms. CarrieAnn Sanders CarrieAnn.Sanders@alterhs.org

Student Council

Student Council members are elected by their peers to be the leaders of the student body. They are expected to always model appropriate student leadership, provide orderly direction for student activities, be a representative of the student body, and serve as a liaison between the students and the faculty. Student Council members are expected to be open to participating in forums with faculty and students, offer programs and opportunities that will emphasize community involvement within the school and promote the spirit and pride of Archbishop Alter High School. Members participate in the planning, preparing, and carrying out of all events sponsored by Student Council.

Leadership Structure (School – Wide Vote):

  • President: Open to Seniors – Overall student head of SC. Organizes and carries out meetings/events with other SC members
  • Vice President: Open to Seniors/Juniors – Assists President in carrying out meetings/events with other SC members. Can provide leadership in absence of President (open to Juniors as well as Seniors)
  • Spirit Officer: Open to Juniors/Seniors. The Spirit Officer will help manage and plan spirit related events such as pep rallies, walks to state, student section themes for sporting events, and help run the “Gold Rush” twitter account.
  • Social Officer: Open to Sophomores- Seniors – The Social Officer will oversee planning and implementing school wide social events run by SC. These events include quarterly activities, dances (if applicable), club fairs, and other events sponsored by student council.
  • Class officers: 4 class officers elected from each class (potentially more depending on election results). Those elected can serve in various capacities (Spirit/Social, etc.) to help carry out student council activities and events. Candidates will run campaigns using posters, campaign videos and other approved materials. There will NOT be speeches given for these positions.
  • Election: Elections will take place in May for the subsequent school year.
  • Moderator: Mr. Alex Schuster Alex.Schuster@alterhs.org