The National Merit Scholarship Corporation announced 15,000 finalists on Thursday in the 63rd annual National Merit Scholarship Program. Among these nationwide finalists are 31 students in Duval County public schools.
These students represent six high schools across the district, with 25 students from Stanton College Preparatory School, two from Paxon School for Advanced Studies, and student each from Atlantic Coast High School, Fletcher High School, Mandarin High School and Westside High School.
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These academically-talented high school seniors have an opportunity to receive one of 7,500 National Merit Scholarships. From April through July, NMSC will notify the 7,500 finalists that have been selected to receive a Merit Scholarship Award. The scholarships include a $2,500 National Merit Scholarship along with corporate and college-sponsored Merit Scholarship awards.
The 31 students selected this year represent the highest number of finalists in the district for the past two school years, ahead of the 23 in 2015 and 30 last year. To be chosen as a finalist, students have a list of requirements to fulfill. They must have a record of consistently high academic performance in grades 9-12, be among the highest scorers on the preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualification Test, submit a detailed application, be endorsed and recommended by a high school official, write an essay and earn high SAT scores.
For more information on the scholarship program, visit NationalMerit.org.