Of the 1.5 million juniors in the nation who took the Pre-SAT test in October 2016, only 16,000 were named National Merit Semifinalists. Seniors Jerry Fang and Ben Hanscom received the honor of being named National Merit Scholars.

“It’s such an honor to be able to share this with so many of my classmates,” Hanscom said. “We’ve always taken pride in being a high-achieving and competitive group and I think we have great potential for future accomplishments.”

Seniors Micah Bruning, Jack Coonrod, Lucas Stewart, Jerry Fang Joshua Martinez, Alec Michel, Diego Cervantes, Eric Dingus, Veronica Hernandez, Blake Halford, Ben Hanscom and MacKenzie Foley were named either National Merit Commended or achieved National Hispanic Recognition.

“15,000 students will be named National Merit Finalists in February,” District Coordinator Jason Gordon said. “Half of those students will be selected as Merit Scholarship winners, earning the Merit Scholar title.”

The 34,000 or so commended students throughout the nation were recognized as National Merit Commended students placing among the top 5 percent nationwide. The College Board’s National Hispanic Recognition program is awarded to students who “have a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or higher on a 4.0 scale and must achieve the minimum Pre-SAT Selection Index score,” Gordon said.

“These students have set a great example for others in our district to follow,” Superintendent Andrew Kim said. “They have achieved one of the highest academic honors in the country. Credit also goes to the teachers who gave these students the critical thinking and leadership skills to reach this esteemed plateau.”