A.R. Johnson Health Science and Engineering Magnet School senior Rafael Geraldo and John S. Davidson Fine Arts Magnet School seniors Hannah Zhou and Katelyn Scoggins have been named semifinalists in the National Merit Scholarship Program.  

"We are proud of our students for being named semifinalists in the 69^th annual National Merit Scholarship Program. These students' commitment to academic success is evident in their high test scores on the PSAT and the advanced courses they excel in. We wish them the very best as they advance to the finalist stage of the competition," says Charlie Tudor III, advanced studies program administrator.  

This prestigious program awards academically talented students across the U.S. with nearly $28 million worth of academic scholarships. Geraldo, Zhou, and Scoggins join more than 16,000 semifinalists in the next stage of the competition to be named a National Merit Finalist. Semifinalists are identified in their junior year of high school based on Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®) scores and represent the highest-scoring entrants in each state.   

Semifinalists will submit an essay and letters of recommendation to be considered for the finalist stage of the competition. Finalists are judged based on their essay, recommendations, grade point average, SAT scores, and the advanced classes completed.  

Our most recent National Merit Scholar finalist was Song Ting Tang. Tang graduated from Davidson Fine Arts Magnet School and now attends Princeton University studying molecular biology.  

Finalists will be announced in April 2024.