National Residence Hall Honorary
The National Residence Hall Honorary, or NRHH, is the premiere honorary dedicated to recognizing leaders in the residence halls (formerly called "dorms") and serves as the recognition branch of NACURH.[1] NACURH, as an organization, believes that recognition is necessary in a strong Residence Hall community. The National Residence Hall Honorary was founded in 1964 to recognize student leaders at universities.[2]
The honorary, although a national organization, has multiple levels of leadership. The most important level is established on university campuses through the creation of chapters. NRHH chapters recognize top leaders that reside on campus through induction into their respective institution's chapter.[3] The NRHH chapter membership (per school) is restricted to 1% of students living in the residence halls. Members are considered, once inducted, to be the Top 1% of residence hall leaders across the nation.[4]
After the close of the NACURH 2008 conference, NRHH became more intertwined into the NACURH corporate structure by the creation of the National Associate for the NRHH and Special Initiatives (NAN) position added as a member of the NACURH Executive Board and the NACURH Board of Directors. This position serves as the Chief Executive Officer of the honorary and will oversee all the Regional Associate Directors for NRHH, known or ADs-NRHH, who serve as Executive Officers of the honorary for their regional constituency. The NAN and ADs-NRHH form the NACURH NRHH Board (NNB), the national governing body of the honorary.
History
In 1964, the National Association of College and University Residence Halls found itself with financial difficulties. Jim Tschechtelin, NACURH Chair, began investigating possibilities for potential revenue sources and grants. Grants were found, but there were two requirements: a central NACURH office had to be established, and the member schools needed more services rendered. Thus, April 25, 1964 at the University of Denver during the annual NACURH Conference the National Residence Hall Honorary was created as an answer to the second requirement.[4]
During the preliminary organization, the National Residence Hall Honorary (NRHH) focused on the incorporation of old into new. Campuses with existing honorary organizations were contacted and coordinated into the NRHH structure. The preservation of chapter identity was primary, as it was incorporated into the NRHH structure, and as each campus is aware of its own individual needs. The primary focus of each chapter became the recognition of the residence hall leaders on its campus. This helped sustain a consistent membership in on-campus organizations, as well as, on the regional and national levels within NACURH.
The years between 1977 and 1987 were years of growth for the NRHH. Pins and certificates were produced to recognize the members of the honorary, the tradition of regional and national receptions during conferences began and formal recruitment and affiliation packets were produced. Regional Recruiter (now called Associate Directors) positions on regional boards were also established. Many awards were created including Program, National Communications Coordinator, Advisor, Student, and Resident Assistant Of The Month Awards as well as the NRHH Outstanding Chapter of the Year.
Today, well over 200 chapters are affiliated with the honorary through the NACURH Information Center. NRHH has become more intertwined into the NACURH Corporate Structure by the addition of the NACURH Associate for the NRHH and Special Initiatives (NAN) to the NACURH Executive Board and its continuance to be the organizations major source of recognition. Activities of the chapters vary from campus to campus. Some simply induct new members at an annual recognition banquet every year, thus, an honorary chapter. Others are extremely active on their campuses and in their communities, coordinating leadership retreats, conferences, socials, hall or campus wide programs, fund raisers, and a whole host of other events. Still others have found a middle ground which suits their campus. Membership selection is conducted by each individual chapter. The chapter members represent the top 1% of the student leaders on campus and are those who have contributed extraordinary amounts of personal time and energy in order to make the residence halls more than a "dorm."[4]
