Highland Park High School is proud to announce that 12 seniors have been named semifinalists in the 2020 National Merit Scholarship Program.
More than 1.5 million juniors in approximately 21,000 high schools from across the country entered into the program by taking the 2018 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test, and only 16,000 of these students qualified as semifinalists. The nationwide pool of semifinalists represents less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors. Semi-finalists will continue in the National Merit Scholarship Corporation's competition for 7,600 scholarships worth more than $31 million that will be offered in the spring.
Highland Park High School's National Merit semifinalists are:
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"Congratulations to the Highland Park High School National Merit Semifinalists for 2019!" HPHS Principal Walter Kelly said. "They have each demonstrated a consistent dedication to academic excellence over many years. Beyond the score, we are proud of the variety of interests and talents present in this amazing group of young people. We are excited about their futures and look forward to following their accomplishments moving forward."
Nationally, approximately 15,000 of the semifinalists are expected to advance to become finalists, and it is from this group that National Merit Scholarship winners will be chosen. Merit Scholar designees are selected based on their accomplishments, skills and potential for success in rigorous college studies.
Three types of Merit Scholarship awards will be offered in the spring of 2020. Every finalist will compete for one of the $2,500 National Merit scholarships that will be awarded on a state representational basis.
In addition, approximately 220 corporations and business organizations will underwrite 1,000 scholarships for finalists who meet their specified criteria, such as children of the grantor's employees or residents of communities where sponsor plants or offices are located. Also, about 180 colleges and universities are expected to finance some 4,100 Merit Scholarship awards for finalists who will attend the sponsoring institutions.
The National Merit Corporation will announce scholarship winners for 2020 in four news releases, beginning in April and concluding in July.