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Patrick M. Andrews, Lauren Chakraborty, Andrew Chang, Katherine F. Jasminski, Colleen Keenan, Ava Kelley, Ella Kemp, Joshua Kim, Karena Landler, Nicholas Patterson, Muge Wange, and Julia Yu are among 16,000 semifinalists competing for 7,500 National Merit Scholarships worth about $33 million, according to the district.
The 12 students each took the first steps toward earning a spot in the competition by scoring in the top 0.5 percentile in the state on the PSAT, a national test administered to 1.5 million students each year that serves as the National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test for high school juniors. The students also met or exceeded a series of published program requirements.
According to the school district, Ridgefield High School submitted detailed scholarship applications for each of the 12 students that provided information on their academic records, school and community activities, leadership roles, employment and awards.
The semifinalists also have recommendations from a high school official, have submitted an essay and have scored well on the SATs.
In total the National Merit Scholarship Program will award 2,500, $2,500 scholarships on a state-representational basis. One thousand other scholarships will be awarded by 230 corporations and 4,000 others will be financed by 190 colleges and universities across the country, according to the district.
Winners of the 2017 National Merit Scholarship Program will be announced in four nationwide press releases issued between April and July.
The process for the 2018 National Merit Scholarship Program is already set to begin, the district said.
The PSAT is scheduled for 8 a.m. on Oct. 15 at Ridgefield High School.
For sophomores, the test is considered the PSAT. For juniors, it the National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test. Juniors must score in the top 0.5 percent in the state to be considered for the scholarship program.
The deadline for registration for the Oct. 15 PSAT is Oct. 4, according to the school district.
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