National Honor Society
Scholarship, Service, Leadership, Character
Purpose
The purpose of this chapter shall be to create an enthusiasm for scholarship, to stimulate a desire to render service, to promote worthy leadership, and to encourage the development of character in students of Stevens High School.
2023-2024
President: Philip B
Vice-President: Samuel B
Secretary: Natalie M
Treasurers: Adalaide M
Advisors:
Ruth Conway (Room 235)
ruth.conway@k12.sd.us
Jennifer Roark (Room 305)
More info
Volunteer Opportunities:
See monthly meeting minutes on the Canvas Course Member Page for opportunities. Please join the "Remind" group in-order to receive up to date volunteer opportunities. Email Mrs. Conway for codes accessing the Remind group.
Volunteer Connections Database: https://volunteer.helplinecenter.org/
Service hours:
Generally speaking, service activities are those that are done for or on behalf of others (not including immediate family members) for which no compensation (monetary or other) has been given.
NHS is a program of the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP).
Dr. Roberta K. Gaines
The Stevens Chapter was renamed the Dr. Roberta K. Gaines Chapter of the National Honor Society in December 2010. Dr. Gaines was a previous advisor who dedicated many years to NHS and her students at Stevens High School.
Dr. Gaines was born on November 29, 1934, in Butte, Montana, to William and Elizabeth Sampson. She was an only child. After graduating from Butte High School she went on to obtain a bachelor's degree in Chemistry from Montana State University in 1956.
Dr. Gaines began work as a research chemist for Phillips Petroleum in 1956, before she married Jack Gaines. Early in her marriage and while her children were young, Dr. Gaines taught piano lessons. In 1970, after her children started school, Dr. Gaines began her 34-year teaching career by taking a position at St. Martin's Academy as a chemistry teacher. One year later she began teaching chemistry at Rapid City Central High School, where she taught for nine years, until taking a one-year break in 1980 to work on her Ph.D. She then returned to work as a Science Resource Teacher for the Rapid City Area Schools for a two-year period. In 1983, Dr. Gaines began teaching chemistry at Rapid City Stevens High School, where she continued teaching until retiring in 2005. Dr. Gaines loved both chemistry and teaching, especially high school students. She was very involved in encouraging students to participate in local, regional and national science and engineering competitions, and she traveled with many students to the annual International Science and Engineering Fair.
During her teaching career, Dr. Gaines achieved many accomplishments. She furthered her education at the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology (SDSM&T), where she obtained a master's degree in chemistry in 1972. In 1986 Dr. Gaines became the first woman to receive a Ph.D. from SDSM&T by receiving a doctorate in geology. Her teaching career included over 37 different honors and awards for excellence, including Outstanding Educator of America, Rapid City Teacher of the Year, Outstanding Physical Science Teacher of the Year, Who's Who Among America's Teachers and the Rapid City Public School Foundation Distinguished Teacher Award. Additionally, in 1977, Governor Janklow proclaimed April 8, 1977, as Dr. Gaines K. Gaines Day in recognition of her Education's Unsung Hero award from Northern Life Insurance Co. In 1985 she traveled to the White House to receive a Presidential Award for Excellence in Science and Mathematics Teaching, which included a $5,000 grant to Stevens High School.
Dr. Gaines was involved in both professional and civic organizations, where she often took leadership roles as president, vice president, secretary or treasurer. These included American Chemical Society, Phi Delta Kappa, Rapid City Education Association, American Association of University Women, National Science Teachers Association, Black Hills Chamber Music Society, and West River Mental Health Center, among others.