Friday, November 21, 2003
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Friday, November 21, 2003 |
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National Merit semifinalists named Several Coweta County students have been announced as semi-finalists or commended students in the 2004 National Merit Scholarship Competition, based on their performance on last year's issuance of the PSAT. The students include: •Semi-finalist Andrew Harwell, of Newnan High School. Harwell is the son of Ronald and Elizabeth Harwell. •Semi-finalist Michael Umberger, of Newnan High School. Umberger is the son of Dr. Steven and Bonnie Umberger. •Commended student Coleman Hancock, of Newnan High School. Hancock is the son of Robert and Candace Hancock. •Commended student Kira Larue, of Northgate High School. LaRue is the daughter of Philip and Lorraine LaRue. More than 1.3 million juniors in over 21,000 U.S. high schools entered the 2004 National Merit Program by taking the 2002 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test. About 34,000 nationwide are recognized for their academic excellence as commended students. Although they will not continue in the 2004 competition for Merit Scholarship awards, commended students placed among the top five percent of all test-takers of the PSAT. Semi-finalists will have the opportunity to compete for National Merit scholarships. These students represent less than one percent of high school seniors, and are comprised of the highest-scoring entrants in each state. The number of semi-finalists in a state is proportional to the state's percentage of the national total of graduating seniors. To become a finalist, semi-finalists must have a record of high academic performance, be endorsed and recommended by their school principal, earn SAT scores that confirm their earlier qualifying test performance, and must complete a detailed scholarship application, including a self-descriptive essay. Finalists will be announced in the spring. The National Merit Scholarship Program was instituted in 1955 to honor scholastically able young men and women, broaden their educational opportunities, and encourage academic excellence at all levels.
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