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Thirteen GSSM Students Named National Merit Finalists
March 17, 2010
Thirteen S.C. Governor's School for Science and Mathematics students from the class of 2010 recently were named finalists in the National Merit Scholarship program. They are among 15,000 students across the United States now vying for 8,200 scholarships worth more than $36 million that will be offered this spring.GSSM's National Merit Finalists include:
- Rowan Armstrong - North Charleston
- Kayla Broeker - Orangeburg
- Alexis Carr - Chester
- Alice Chang - Summerville
- China Cox - Mullins
- Dominic Ranz Ebarle Errazo - Goose Creek
- Millie Griffin - Florence
- Ramiz Hamid - Saint Helena
- Emily Harruff - Columbia
- Andy Jenkins - Abbeville
- Somin (Susie) Lee - Greenville
- James F. McManus Jr. - Lexington
- Alice Sudlow - Florence
"GSSM may be the smallest high school in the state, yet it perennially leads in the number of National Merit Scholar Finalists. This accomplishment actually has little to do with GSSM, but a great deal to do with the students and their families," said Dr. Murray Brockman, GSSM president.
"A long-standing commitment to hard work and doing one's best in every endeavor is a part of the characters of these young people. I'm proud of every one of them."
Approximately 90 percent of the total 16,000 semifinalists named in September advanced to the finalist level, and approximately half of those will eventually earn a scholarship, according to the National Merit Scholarship Corporation, the program's non-profit sponsor.
More than 1.5 million juniors in more than 22,000 high schools entered the 2010 National Merit Program by taking the 2008 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test, which serves as an initial screening.
The number of semifinalists in a state is proportional to the state's percentage of the national total of graduating seniors. To advance to the finalist stage, a semifinalist must have an outstanding academic record throughout high school, be endorsed and recommended by the high school principal, and earn SAT scores that confirm the student's earlier performance on the qualifying test.
A detailed scholarship application - including an essay and information about the student's participation and leadership in school and community activities - also is required. Merit Scholars will be selected from the finalist pool on the basis of their skills, accomplishments and potential for success in rigorous college studies.
Scholarship awards will be announced beginning in April 2010 and concluding in July.
