CSF registration opens doors for new semester

By Daisy McKim,

HUB Staff Writer–

 

With the start of second semester, the California Scholarship Federation (CSF) is opening its doors to both new and returning members. During the two-week registration period from Feb. 12 to Feb. 22, nearly 350 CSF members will file through the narrow door of P-13 to join the community service club.

CSF is a statewide program, founded in 1921. This club’s early beginnings make it the oldest scholarship institution in California.

According to the Davis High CSF president, senior Manraj Gill, CSF is all about promoting community service.

“CSF’s mission statement is ‘Scholarship for Service’ and the goal is to identify and recognize students at the high school who have excelled in academics, community service and citizenship,” Gill said. “The main goal for the DHS chapter each year is to provide opportunities for the students to be able to give back to our community.”

Gill has been an integral part of the Davis High CSF community for three years. As an active member his sophomore year, secretary his junior year, and president his senior year, Gill has played an important part in improving the Davis chapter.

“Last semester could not have gone any better, and I’m personally hoping that we can maintain that standard,” Gill said. “Each of the officers brought something different to the table, and I believe that by fulfilling our individual duties, we pushed each other forward to doing more than what the descriptions of our positions say.”

Alongside his fellow officers (vice-president Victoria Mohtes-Chan, secretary Han-ah Sumner, project coordinators Anny Huang and Andrew Block, and public relations officers Ben Jin and Steven Orr), Gill has helped make some significant changes within the most recent semester of CSF.

In the hopes of improving communication between officers and members, Gill created the first comprehensive CSF website: www.dhscsf.yolasite.com. With this new site, each CSF member can view their volunteer status, and keep up to date with new projects and their personal membership.

“This website informs each member of the number of semesters they have been a member, the number of hours sheets submitted and the meeting dates attended. But most importantly, the member information pages tell each student what he/she would personally need to do in order to attain Lifetime or Active Lifetime membership in CSF,” Gill said.

As a Lifetime or Active Lifetime member of CSF, students will receive the CSF gold seal on transcripts and diplomas, as well as a special gold tassel for graduation night.

 

The new yolasite web page isn’t the only way CSF is getting involved with social media. This year, public relations officer Ben Jin has initiated a twitter page for Davis High CSF in the hopes of improving communication within the massive club.

CSF this year is also pioneering a new method of organizing sign-ups for CSF events. Google Docs has enabled more efficient registration for volunteer events.

Finally, CSF made a huge change this year, and decided to make t-shirts for the first time at Davis High.

“We endeavored for the first ever CSF t-shirts, but that venture was simply to promote CSF spirit and unity, and wasn’t focused at necessarily improving how CSF runs,” Gill said.

Nonetheless, CSF sold a large number of t-shirts this year, and the distinctive navy and yellow shirts are not an uncommon sight around campus.

Though CSF has experienced a number of changes during the last semester, registration has remained roughly the same. To become a member of CSF you need to satisfy a minimal grade requirement, bring a copy of your grade report, turn in a 5$ registration fee, and fill out a pink registration sheet. Additionally, if you were a member of CSF the semester previous, turning in an hour sheet is required.

CSF advisor, Fern O’Brien, notes, regarding registration, that CSF has “really tried to fine-tune it over the years, and to make sure all the information gets out so people know when they can register and what they need.”

“I think the officers have done a really good job in communicating that,” O’Brien said.

In a final note, Gill would like to remind seniors to register for spring semester:

“It is important for all Class of 2013 seniors to register in spring based on senior year grades in order to qualify for Lifetime and Active Lifetime membership even if they have already completed four eligible semesters,” Gill said.