Order of the Sword & Shield

Order of the Sword & Shield
Order of the Sword & Shield
OSSNHS or ΟΣΣ
Founded	2010; 15 years ago; St. John's University
Type	Honor
Affiliation	Independent
Status	Active
Emphasis	Protective security disciplines
Scope	International
Motto	Ex scientia pax {"Out of knowledge comes peace")
Pillars	Excellence, Knowledge, Ethics, and Peace
Colors	Blue and Gold
Chapters	100+
Other name	Omicron Sigma Sigma
Headquarters	P.O. Box 972; Coram, New York 11727; United States
Website	www.securityhonorsociety.org

The Order of the Sword & Shield National Honor Society (OSSNHS or ΟΣΣ) is an international honor society for undergraduate students, graduate students, and professionals in the fields of homeland security, intelligence, emergency management, and all protective security disciplines.^[1]

History

The Order of the Sword & Shield was established in 2010 at St. Johns University by Professor Jeffrey Grossmann.^[2] The organization was created to be the first national honor society dedicated exclusively to homeland security, intelligence, emergency management and all protective security disciplines.^[2] Grossman serves as its executive director.^[2] Its headquarters are in Coram, New York.^[2] It has chartered more than 100 collegiate chapters.^[3]

Symbols

The National Honor Society is also known by its Greek designation Omicron Sigma Sigma (ΟΣΣ).^[2] Its colors are gold and blue.^[4] The official motto in Latin is Ex scientia pax which means "Out of knowledge comes peace".^[5]^[2] Its core values or pillars are excellence, knowledge, ethics, and peace.^[6]

Membership

In order to qualify, undergraduate students must have a 3.25 overall grade point average or higher (on a 4.0 scale) and have completed 50 percent of their overall program if they are majoring in a field within the honor society's charter. For graduate students to qualify, they must have a 3.5 overall GPA or higher (on a 4.0 scale) and must also have completed over 50 percent of their program to apply for membership. In addition, a letter of recommendation and an unofficial transcript is required.^[1] Professionals who have demonstrated significant achievement in a homeland security, intelligence, emergency management, or security-related occupation may also apply. They must have five years of experience and submit a letter of recommendation and resume.^[7]

Chapters

Collegiate chapters

Following is a list of the Order of the Sword collegiate chapters.^[3] Inactive institutions are indicated in italics.

Charter date and range	Institution	Location	Status	References
2010	St. John's University	New York City, New York	Active
2013	Adelphi University	Garden City, New York	Active	^[8]
2015	Angelo State University	San Angelo, Texas	Active	^[9]
November 2023	Pennsylvania State University	State College, Pennsylvania	Active	^[10]
	Anderson University	Anderson, South Carolina	Active
	Albertus Magnus College	New Haven, Connecticut	Active
	American Military University and American Public University	Charles Town, West Virginia	Active	^[11]^[a]
	Augusta University	Augusta, Georgia	Active
	Bellevue University	Bellevue, Nebraska	Active
	Brevard College	Brevard, North Carolina	Active
	Calhoun Community College	Tanner, Alabama	Active	^[12]
	California State Polytechnic University, Pomona	Pomona, California	Active
	Campbell University	Buies Creek, North Carolina	Active
	Coastal Carolina University	Conway, South Carolina	Active
	Collin College	McKinney, Texas	Active
	Columbia Southern University	Orange Beach, Alabama	Active	^[13]
xxxx ?–2020	Daniel Morgan Graduate School of National Security	Capitol Heights, Maryland	Inactive	^[14]^[15]^[b]
	Davis Technical College	Kaysville, Utah	Active
	DeSales University	Center Valley, Pennsylvania	Active
	Dillard University	New Orleans, Louisiana	Active
	Eastern Kentucky University	Richmond, Kentucky	Active	^[16]
	Elizabeth City State University	Elizabeth City, North Carolina	Active
	Embry–Riddle Aeronautical University	Daytona Beach, Florida	Active	^[17]
	Emmanuel College	Boston, Massachusetts	Active
	Fairleigh Dickinson University	Madison, New Jersey	Active	^[18]
	Fayetteville State University	Fayetteville, North Carolina	Active	^[19]
	Florida Southwestern State College	Fort Myers, Florida	Active
	Franklin University	Columbus, Ohio	Active
	Georgia Southern University	Statesboro, Georgia	Active
	Grand Canyon University	Phoenix, Arizona	Active
	Hilbert College	Hamburg, New York	Active
	Immaculata University	East Whiteland Township, Pennsylvania	Active
	Jefferson Community College	Watertown, New York	Active
	Johns Hopkins University	Baltimore, Maryland	Active
	Keiser University	Fort Lauderdale, Florida	Active
	Kennesaw State University	Kennesaw, Georgia	Active	^[20]
	LeTourneau University	Longview, Texas	Active
	Liberty University	Lynchburg, Virginia	Active	^[21]
	Long Island Business Institute	New York City, New York	Inactive	^[22]^[c]
	Louisiana State University Shreveport	Shreveport, Louisiana	Active
	MacMurray College	Jacksonville, Illinois	Inactive	^[d]
	Marian University		Active
	Marymount University	Arlington County, Virginia	Active
	Marist College	Poughkeepsie, New York	Active
	Medaille College	Buffalo, New York	Active
	Mercyhurst College	Erie, Pennsylvania	Active
	Millersville University of Pennsylvania	Millersville, Pennsylvania	Active
	Mitchell College	New London, Connecticut	Active
	Monmouth University	West Long Branch, New Jersey	Active
	National University		Active
	National American University	Rapid City, South Dakota	Active	^[a]
	New Jersey City University	Jersey City, New Jersey	Active
	Northeastern University	Boston, Massachusetts	Active
	Northeastern State University	Tahlequah, Oklahoma	Active
	Notre Dame College	South Euclid, Ohio	Active
	Oakland City University	Oakland City, Indiana	Active
	Oklahoma Christian University	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma	Active
	Pacific Union College	Angwin, California	Active
	Palm Beach State College	Lake Worth Beach, Florida	Active
	Paul D. Camp Community College	Franklin, Virginia	Active
	Point Park University	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	Active
	Purdue University	West Lafayette, Indiana	Active
	Purdue University Global		Active
	Rabdan Academy	Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates	Active
	Robert Morris University	Moon Township, Pennsylvania	Active	^[23]
	Saint Leo University	St. Leo, Florida	Active
	Saint Louis University	St. Louis, Missouri	Active
	Sam Houston State University	Huntsville, Texas	Active
	San Diego State University	San Diego, California	Active
	Sheridan College	Ontario, Canada	Active
	Slippery Rock University	Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania	Active
	Southeast Missouri State University	Cape Girardeau, Missouri	Active
	Stevens Institute of Technology	Hoboken, New Jersey	Active
	State University of New York at Albany	Albany, New York	Active
	State University of New York at Canton	Canton, New York	Active
	State University of New York at Farmingdale	East Farmingdale, New York	Active
	State University of New York at Potsdam	Potsdam, New York	Active
	Tiffin University	Tiffin, Ohio	Active
	The Citadel	Charleston, South Carolina	Active
	Thomas Edison State University	Trenton, New Jersey	Active	^[24]
	Thomas Jefferson University	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	Active
	Cooley Law School	Lansing, Michigan	Active
	Tidewater Community College	Virginia	Active
	Towson University	Towson, Maryland	Active
	Tulane University	New Orleans, Louisiana	Active
	University of Alabama at Birmingham	Birmingham, Alabama	Active
	University of Alaska Fairbanks	College, Alaska	Active	^[25]
	University of Central Arkansas	Conway, Arkansas	Active
	University of Central Florida	Orlando, Florida	Active
	University of Detroit Mercy	Detroit, Michigan	Active
	University of Findlay	Findlay, Ohio	Active
	University of Lynchburg	Lynchburg, Virginia	Active
	University of Maryland, College Park	College Park, Maryland	Active	^[26]
	University of Mississippi	University, Mississippi	Active
	University of New Hampshire	Durham, New Hampshire	Active
	University of Phoenix	Phoenix, Arizona	Active
	University of South Florida	Tampa, Florida	Active
	University of Texas at El Paso	El Paso, Texas	Active
	University of the District of Columbia	Washington, D.C.	Active
	Vincennes University	Vincennes, Indiana	Active
	Walden University	Minneapolis, Minnesota	Active	^[a]
	Waldorf University	Forest City, Iowa	Active
	Coalinga College	Coalinga, California	Active	^[e]
	Western Governors University	Millcreek, Utah	Active	^[a]
	Westminster College	Fulton, Missouri	Active
	York College of Pennsylvania	Spring Garden Township, Pennsylvania	Active

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d This is an online college.
^ School closed on July 31, 2020.
^ The institute closed on January 27, 2024.
^ The college closed in May 2020.
^ Chapter formed at West Hills College Coalinga, now called Coalinga College.

High school chapters

Chapter	Charter date	Institution	Location	Status	Location
HS Alpha	2021	Bob Jones High School	Madison, Alabama	Active	^[3]^[27]
		James Clemens High School	Madison, Alabama	Active

Professional chapters

Institution	Location	Status	Location
Disaster Recovery Institute International (DRI)	Dearborn, Michigan	Active	^[3]
International Society for Preparedness, Resilience, and Security		Active	^[3]
Loss Prevention Foundation (LPF)	Mooresville, North Carolina	Active	^[3]