Three USF students receive National Engaged Leader Award, 40 inducted into National Society of Leadership and Success

Forty students were recently inducted as lifetime members into USF’s chapter of the NSLS. In addition, three students received the National Engaged Leader Award in recognition of their commitment to chapter activities and community service:

• Carolina Garcia, a junior from Yankton, South Dakota, majoring in Elementary Education and Special Education.
• Meegan Hanson, a senior from Windom, Minnesota, majoring in Business Administration.
• Natalie Lingenfelter, a sophomore from Plainview, Nebraska, majoring in English.

“I think the greatest value of the NSLS is that it helps students believe in themselves and in turn help others to do the same,” said Associate Professor of Business and NSLS Advisor Martha Helland. “This positive leadership approach serves them well in their undergraduate years and will be invaluable as they enter their future careers as leaders.”

More than 300 University of Sioux Falls students have grown personally and professionally through the National Society of Leadership and Success (NSLS), since its inception in 2011.

Dr. Helland said the most gratifying part of being an advisor is seeing students find their niche through the NSLS.

“I love seeing a quiet student jump into conversations, knowing a transfer student has found friends who care about them, hearing a student enthusiastically talk about their newly declared major or having a student come in my office and tell me they have found their passion and are going into nursing or are going to take the CPA,” Dr. Helland said.

The Society of Leadership and Success is a national honor society that focuses on developing student leadership abilities through speaker events and Success Networking Teams comprised of small groups of students who help each other work towards accomplishing challenging goals. As members learn to lead themselves, they are then encouraged to use their skills in service to the community.