And this year’s award for outstanding achievement goes to … Allison Crawford.
Crawford, a liberal studies senior seeking two teaching credentials from Cal Poly, recently received a 2010 National Society of Collegiate Scholars (NSCS) Chapter Officer Award for her exemplary service as co-president to the Cal Poly NSCS chapter. She also earned a $200 scholarship toward education.
Every year, the NSCS hands out five awards to five different chapters in five different regions. Crawford took home hardware for the West Coast region, beating 12 states for the prize.
“I am very honored,” Crawford said of her merited accolade.
But she stays humble in her victory, saying that though she came out on top, other chapter members are just as deserving.
“Really, it doesn’t matter that I won. Others have done just as much I have for the organization and community,” she said.
Mike Bingham, a biomedical engineering junior and chapter co-president, said working with Crawford has been a pleasure and the pair have developed a strong friendship.
“Honestly, if she wasn’t co-president this year, I probably wouldn’t be either,” Bingham said. “She motivates members of NSCS to be a bigger part of the community.”
Bingham said Crawford is always one step ahead of the game and steps up to get the job done.
“Allison is an amazing president. I’m happy to be working with her because I know that there will be no surprises. The work she puts into this club makes it operate so much better, and NSCS would definitely be worse off without her,” he said.
Before Crawford became co-president, NSCS program director Janine Deegan said, the chapter fulfilled the requirements of community service. Since her induction, the chapter has gone above and beyond requirements and positively impacts the community.
While the chapter roots in academic prowess, Crawford said its greater mission is servicing the community, reiterating that it’s the chapter’s number one priority.
The chapter holds local events hoping to bolster community activism and provide life enrichment. For example, “March to College Day,” a day devoted to promoting higher education, affords local fifth-graders a chance to experience college life. Included in their campus tour, young scholars watch science experiments, make art projects and even sneak a peek inside dorms.
Bingham said Crawford’s aptitude for learning is indicative of her desire to become a teacher.
“She was amazing with every single kid, and I swear those kids will remember her the most the next time they come to Cal Poly,” Bingham said of what he recalled as one of the best memories working with Crawford.
The chapter also brings smiles to adults, and this year held incognito food drives for the Prado Day Center. Bingham said the chapter raised $1,000 worth of groceries and surprised the center with its donation.
And the selfless parade continues rolling through campus.
Sharon Dobson, the chapter’s adviser, said Crawford’s inspiring work ethic pushes her to make a difference every day.
“Allison leads by example and doesn’t ask anyone to do anything that she isn’t willing to do herself,” Dobson said.
According to its website, the NSCS is a member of the Association of College Honor Societies. It recognizes high-achieving college students at 250 universities across the United States. The invitation to join the society comes during freshman and sophomore years in college, and qualifying students have at least a 3.4 GPA and rank in the top 20 percent of their class.
Despite its invite-only policy, said Crawford, students can self-nominate themselves via written correspondence — by issuing a claim of collegiate-scholar worth to the national office in Washington D.C. This provision provides students such as biomedical engineering major Miguel Mendoza a chance to become an official scholar.
And Crawford said pseudo-members like Mendoza deserve the highest regard.
Mendoza, though not an ‘official’ NSCS member, still lends a helping hand. He has participated in NSCS events and says self-nomination is his next step.
“Volunteering for the community can be an extremely gratifying and heart-warming experience,” Mendoza said. “I feel accomplished and just plain-old happy when I know that the actions of NSCS members have influenced someone’s life in a positive way.”
Outside the NSCS bubble of responsibility, Crawford spends her days mixing and matching her classroom studies with real-world experience, as she student-teaches at Bishop Elementary in San Luis Obispo.
She is essentially knocking out two teaching credentials with one throw of her academic stone. And her college plan is “kind of complicated,” she says.
Currently pursuing a B.S. in liberal studies from the College of Science and Mathematics, Crawford said students wishing to become teachers — in either multiple or single subjects — can couple a liberal studies degree with Cal Poly’s teaching credential program. She calls it a “blended program” which sets students on a four-and-a-half year track toward graduation.
Upcoming NSCS events include volunteering at the Wildflower Triathlon April 30 to May 2 and Relay For Life during Memorial Day weekend.