Kennett High School announced that seven Kennett High School students have been recognized as National Merit Semifinalists in the 60th annual National Merit Scholarship Program.

Seniors Richard Doty, Jonathan Baumel, P.J. O’Sullivan, Liam Bonnage, Katie Gallivan, Dave Lavin, and Nichol Brown were among approximately 1.4 million juniors in more than 22,000 high schools who entered the 2015 National Merit Program by taking the 2013 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) that served as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of semifinalists represents less than one percent of high school seniors and includes the highest scoring entrants in each state.  The number of semifinalists in each state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the national total of graduating seniors.

These students are eligible to continue in the program competition for some 7,600 National Merit Scholarship awards worth more than $33 million to be offered in the spring.  To advance to the finalist level and to be considered for a Merit Scholarship award, semifinalists must fulfill several additional requirements.  These include an outstanding academic record, endorsement by the Principal, and SAT scores that confirm the preliminary results.  The semifinalist and his/her counselor must submit a detailed scholarship application that includes the student’s essay and information about his/her participation and leadership in school and community activities.