A new student organization has come to campus called the National Residence Hall Honorary, or NRHH. They hope to recruit and recognize influential students residing in one of the three residence halls on campus: Gessner Hall, the New Living Center and Irwin Hall. The program has just begun, but already has five members, weekly meetings and huge plans for the future.

Director of Residence Life and Conference Services, Nicholas Goodman, hopes the affiliation with the NRHH will be felt across campus within the next year. He predicts they will reach full capacity within the next few years and are wanting to recruit up to 20 students who are passionate about the quality and status of the residence halls on campus.

The NRHH is a national chain of regional affiliates, with local chapters underneath. For Baker University, once the initiation process is complete, it will become a chapter within the Omega Plains Chapter of the NRHH.

Goodman said the NRHH is primarily focused on campus-wide programming, advocacy for residence hall students, residence hall concerns and bringing recognition to people across campus who deserve it.

Rhonda Applegate, the NRHH national communication coordinator, is currently working to spread the word of the organization across campus. She hopes to identify people within the residence halls who don’t get as much recognition.

Applegate’s position and responsibilities include biweekly Skype meetings with every institution involved in NRHH to discuss programming and planning events. She also discusses issues regarding the safety and quality of residence halls across the NRHH region, making sure the institutions are up to date on codes.

“It’s a great opportunity to get involved with how the housing here at Baker is run, as well as a really incredible leadership position,” Applegate said.

To join the NRHH, students must be nominated, apply and then be inducted, with the next induction occurring in the spring or fall semester of 2019.

The organization is described as the top one percent of leaders in the residence halls, and Goodman says the organization invites a wide variety of people to apply.

The perfect candidates for the NRHH, according to Goodman, is anyone who wants to improve where they live or the communities they live in.

Members of the NRHH also have the opportunity to attend regional and national leadership conferences. The first trip is this November, where members will be venturing to the University of Iowa.