The list of Manual’s National Merit Semifinalists available to be seen today.
There were 48 students enrolled at Manual who were recognized, four are dual enrolled either at Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Sciences or at Craft Academy for Excellence in Science and Mathematics.
Sofia Labrecque (12, MST) is one of the 48 students who scored high enough on the PSAT their junior year to be selected.
“It’s something I’ll be proud to tell my kids,” Labrecque said. “If I stay in state for college, the scholarships for being a semifinalist are quite substantial. Hopefully I’ll be able to graduate debt-free. Whether I go in-state or out-of-state, it’ll be an accomplishment I can be proud of.”
Emily Liu (12, MST) is another of the recognized students.
“I was happy,” Liu said. “It is an honor to be named a National Merit Semifinalist.”
The PSAT was a different format this year than it has been in previous years.
“The school gave us some paper booklets informing us about the new format of the PSAT,” Liu said.
The National Merit Semifinalists will now have to take the SAT to determine if they are National Merit Finalists.
Having the title of National Merit Semifinalist makes admittance to some colleges easier, it also gives the recognized students a chance to compete to become National Merit Finalists.
Many schools also give very generous scholarships to National Merit Semifinalists and Finalists.
“It is something that has been expected of me; I still need to focus on the finalist application and the other aspects of my college applications,” Labrecque said. “I do think I will be a finalist, I have a strong, well rounded academic background so I should be a prime candidate. If I do receive finalist status, being one of the few Hispanic candidates will be an incredible feeling.”
Liu feels the same way about preparing the finalist application.
“Being named a semifinalist is only the first step in the National Merit Scholarship Competition,” Liu said. “My next step is to finish the application and submit all of the information the National Merit Corporation needs.”
See a completed list of the semifinalists along with a picture below.
Row 2 Left to Right: Amy Medley (Counselor), Sara Frigui, Catherine Ho, Sofia Labrecque, Rose Chancy, Rebecca Goldberg, Anna Gilbert, Morgan Horsley, Emily Dotson, Shelley Williams, Lavanya Kanneganti, Manting Xu, Sneha Thirkannad, Marti Johnston (Counselor)
Row 3 Left to Right: Dennis Robinson (Counselor) Charlie Bosco, Austin Kline, Vincent Liu, Nelson Penn, Rohan Kulkarni, Nathan Stromberg, Matthew Raj, Mukund Venkatakrishnan, Jumin Kim, Abraham Riedel-Mishaan, Ryan Folz, Michelle Leslie (Counselor)
Row 4 Left to Right: Rishi Talati, Andrew McFarland, Jacob Keisling, John Cullen, Praharshasai Paladugu, Sterling Richmond, Joshua Dye, Austin Bridges, Nicholas Dudzinski, Jerry Mayes (Principal)
Not Pictured (5 students):
Benjamin Ragsdell
Manual Students dual enrolled at the Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Science:
Katherine Brown
Eileen Price
Sara Saeed
Manual Student dual enrolled at the Craft Academy for Excellence in Science and Mathematics:
Isis Shackelford
Photo courtesy of duPont Manual.
