Lakeland High School

NHS Service Project Overview


“Witness to History”
Lakeland High School National Honor Society Project
The national constitution mandates that each chapter 
conduct a chapter service project each year.
Everyone has a story to tell.
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As part of your requirements for induction into the Lakeland High School National Honor Society, you and your peers will participate in a group project that asks you to locate and recognize someone from our community who has witnessed or participated in a significant historical event.  Our purpose is to identify, recognize and honor individuals who have a unique insight and experience related to a moment in history. 

Requirements:  Students will work in teams of six. All teams must be approved by your NHS advisor. All teams must read and sign the Participation Agreement.

Within each group, there will be three smaller groups of two: Reporters, Historians and Filmmakers

As a team of six, you will brainstorm, locate and identify an individual(s) who is willing to participate in your project.  All Witness to History subjects must be approved by your NHS Advisor. Subjects must also sign a release form agreeing to be interviewed, filmed and have that information shared with the community.

2 Reporters – (5 Hours)
Your job is to interview the subject of your project. You should compose a list of questions ahead of time and be prepared to work with the subject directly on two separate occasions.  Your questions should be interesting, thought-provoking and respectful.  Let them tell their story.  You should use information from your Historians to help guide your interview.  You should take at least one photograph of the person you are interviewing as well as some photographs of specific artifacts that the subject wishes to share with you. 

2 Historians – (5 Hours)
Your job is to research and present the historical information surrounding the particular moment in history related to your volunteer.  Give us the background and the historical context surrounding the event.  Explain the significance and the effects of the event.  Based on your research, you should give your Reporters specific questions to include in the interview. You should also locate and print out significant newspaper articles and photographs.

2 Filmmakers – (5 Hours)
The job of the filmmakers is to present the information in a mini-documentary.  Using the information gathered, present the history of the event followed by the interview.  You can do this using a Power Point, by creating a short film or creating an interactive multi-media display.

Final Presentation – (5 Hours)
The final part of our Witness to History project will be sharing our documentaries and honoring our participants in a reception to be held in the spring in the Lakeland High School Cafeteria.  The student teams and the participants, along with family, teachers, administrators, friends and community members will be invited to see your projects.  We will introduce our teams and our W2H participants and celebrate their lives and their stories. 

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE SERVICE PROJECT OVERVIEW