The ISU chapter of the Golden Key International Honor Society received the Honorable Mention Key Chapter Award at the group’s national convention.

The award was presented at the Golden Key International Convention in Atlanta, Ga. in August. It is given to the chapter that has met the organization’s standards and provided a valuable service to its community.

The standards include campus access and publicity, honorary member outreach, a chapter yearbook, chapter activities and attendance at the international and regional conferences among other things, according to the organization.

Receiving the award was “due to a lot of leadership and sticking with it,” said Ian Liggett, senior in mechanical engineering and the group’s Web master. “The president has been involved [with Golden Key] before, and knew what direction to go in.”

The convention was a weekend of workshops for the students on an organizational, professional and personal level.

Lee Furbeck, co-adviser for the group, said there were a variety of sessions for the four students who went. Sessions ranged from personal development – such as networking and career objectives – to tips for improving chapter community service activities.

Erin Will, Golden Key president and senior in biochemistry, and Liggett agreed most of the convention was about meeting students from chapters all over the world. “The students learned [at the conference] and came back with great ideas,” Furbeck said.

The ISU chapter extends invitations to join Golden Key to the top 15 percent of juniors and seniors, roughly 1,500 students. It is a leadership and service group, and most of its active members participate in community service projects organized by the executive committee.

Members are not required to participate in service projects, but active members often steadily participate, Will said.

In the past, Golden Key has worked with the Ames and Boys and Girls Club playing games with the children. This year, it plans to work with Fellows Elementary School, giving mini-grants to teachers for class activities and tutoring students.

The students organize and perform all community service functions.

There were no regular service projects until recently, but Will hopes current projects will form partnerships for continuing service projects in the future.