09.15.10
14 Charlotte Latin seniors selected as National Merit semifinalists
School has most semifinalists among all N.C. independent schools
Charlotte Latin School seniors John Bowman, KJ Bredder, Elizabeth Carlson, Maggie Gardner, Michael Grace, Emily Griffin, Brian Lax, Siân Lewis-Bevan, Maddie Metz, Andrei Nesmelov, Jalen Ross, Alex Sanz, Johnny Shea and Brendan Shi have been selected as National Merit semifinalists in the 56th annual National Merit Scholarship Program. These students have an opportunity to continue in the competition for some 8,400 National Merit Scholarships, worth more than $36 million, which will be offered next spring.
Charlotte Latin has the most semifinalists among all North Carolina independent schools.
The National Merit Scholarship Corporation was established in 1955 specifically to conduct the annual National Merit Scholarship Program. High school students enter the National Merit Program by taking the PSAT/NMSQT—a test which serves as an initial screen of approximately 1.5 million entrants each year—and by meeting published program entry and participation requirements.
Each September, approximately 16,000 students are notified that they have qualified as semifinalists. The nationwide pool of semifinalists, representing less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the highest scoring entrants in each state. To be considered for a Merit Scholarship award, semifinalists must advance to finalist standing in the competition by meeting high academic standards, receiving endorsement and recommendation by the school principal or headmaster, and earning SAT scores that confirm each student’s earlier qualifying test performance. Students will be notified in February if they have advanced to finalist standing, and it is at this level that all Merit Scholarship winners are chosen.
Read The Charlotte Observer article about National Merit semifinalists.
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09.27.10
The following Latin seniors have been named National Merit Commended Scholars: Allison Ditmore, Matt Feld, Ryan Fogg, Katherine Peters, Connor Stefan, Andrew Taylor, and Baynes Welch. These students scored in the top 5% nationally on the junior PSAT and received a Letter of Commendation from the National Merit Scholarship Program.