09.17.09
Charlotte, N.C. – Charlotte Latin School seniors Ross Calhoun, Matt Dickinson, Betsy Gammon, Caroline Gill, Kellen Heniford, Robert Jones, Erin Love, Caroline Lowe, Gus Mayopoulos and Elena Sharma have been selected as National Merit semifinalists in the 55th annual National Merit Scholarship Program. These students have an opportunity to continue in the competition for some 8,200 National Merit Scholarships, worth more than $36 million, that will be offered next spring.
Heniford is one of two students in North Carolina to earn a perfect score on the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test. Charlotte Latin had the most semifinalists among Charlotte-area independent schools and tied with Durham Academy for 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 the earlier qualifying test performances. 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.