Congratulations to Isabella DeCurtis’20; Maryannette Diaz’20; Hannah Gurney’20; Angeline Jacob’20; Yoona Kim’20; Emma Kramer’20; Emma Matesic’20; Juliana Najjar’20; Jessica O’Neill’20; Emma Patton’20; Gabrielle Peko’20; Sophia Ruggier’20; and Elise Vergos’20.

The National Merit® Scholarship Program is an academic competition for recognition and scholarships that began in 1955. High school students enter the National Merit® Program by taking the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®)—which serves as an initial screen of approximately 1.6 million entrants each year. The National Merit® Scholarship Program honors individual students who show exceptional academic ability and potential for success in rigorous college studies.

In September 2019, about 34,000 of the approximately 50,000 high scorers on the PSAT/NMSQT® received Letters of Commendation in recognition of their outstanding academic promise. Commended Students are awarded on the basis of a national Selection Index qualifying score, which varies from year to year. The national qualifying score for Commended Students in the 2020 program was 212.