Written Invitation Required

In keeping with the Association of College Honor Societies (ACHS) requirements for honor societies and the CSI Bylaws, invitation to membership in CSI must be presented individually in writing, preferably by traditional letter format. Invitation to membership is an honor and deserves special effort and treatment to convey its importance. We hope the following draft will provide a template for your Chapter’s individualized letter to prospective members, preferably on your CSI Chapter’s letterhead (see www.csistore.org for ordering). If you already have such a letter, then the only addition you may need to make is for all applicants to complete the form online and provide the Chapter with the initiation payment as noted in paragraph 4 of the letter below. If the chapter desires further information from the applicant, e.g, permanent home or email address or interest in chapter committees, a separate enclosure could address these topics

It is essential that new members use the online application in order to be properly processed. There will be a fee deducted from chapter rebates for each application processed manually so we hope to save Chapters the disappointment of reduced rebates.

SAMPLE LETTER OF INVITATION

Dear Honor Society Nominee:

The membership committee of the OUR chapter of Chi Sigma Iota Counseling Academic and Professional Honor Society International congratulates you on your academic excellence in the Your University Graduate School of Education’s Counselor Education program. After due consideration of all criteria for nomination to membership in the Society Bylaws, we are pleased to invite you to membership in our Chapter of the Society.

Chi Sigma Iota (CSI) has initiated over 66,000 professionals and professionals-in-training worldwide, and currently has over 12,500 active members among over 260 campus based chapters in this country and abroad. As a result, you will be recognized by and affiliated with one of the largest counseling organizations in the world with its sole mission to recognize and promote excellence in the profession of counseling.

Please visit www.csi-net.org to (a) learn more about CSI and its many activities; (b) read past issues of the Society publication, the Exemplar; (c) learn about criteria for grants, awards and fellowships; (d) review CSI accomplishments and advocacy activities for professional counselors; or (e) view available graduation regalia, member clothing and jewelry, and much more! Our Chapter Web site is located at http://XXX.edu/orgs/csi.

In order to accept this invitation, please complete the application on the CSI Web site (www.csi-net.org) under the membership application link on the left navigation bar. When asked, your Chapter Faculty Advisor (CFA) is Dr. XXXXX .

After you type in all the requested information,

Submit the application form at the bottom of the page
Notify Dr. Chapter Faculty Advisor that you have completed the application online. You also will need to provide a check in the amount of $35 made out to your chapter, unless you paid online. Local dues of $X may be paid separately or included with the amount above (i.e., $35 + $5 = $40). Your Chapter Faculty Advisor will receive your online application form via email and will print out a copy to sign and send to CSI Headquarters.
Your check will be deposited in the Chapter bank account and all applicants’ names with one combined check will be forwarded to CSI headquarters at the same time. It is therefore extremely important that you complete the application process by the Month and day/date (e.g., Monday, March 12th ) deadline. Meeting this deadline will also ensure that your CSI certificate and membership pin will be available to present to you at our Chapter’s initiation ceremony which will be held in the Spring 200X semester.

We applaud your commitment to both personal and professional excellence. We know that you will want to invite friends, family, and all who support you in this commitment to attend and celebrate at our Chapter’s Initiation of new members. You will receive your membership certificate and recognition pin at that time.

Again, welcome and enjoy this recognition. If you have any questions, please feel free to send an e-mail to XXXX XXXX, Chapter President, at: her/hisemail@yourU.edu.

Sincerely,

Good Advisor, Ph.D, LPC, NCC XXXX XXXX

Chapter Faculty Advisor Chapter President