School District announces 78 National Merit Scholarship semifinalists

At Clark High School, headshots of past National Merit Scholarship semifinalists line the hallways.

It’s a row of portraits that will soon see 33 new headshots added to its ranks, after the high school snagged the lion’s share of the 78 National Merit Scholarship semifinalists named in the Clark County School District this year.

National Merit Scholarship semifinalists represent less than 1 percent of high school seniors across the country and will go on to compete for $28 million in college scholarships later this school year, according to the district.

More than 1.5 million juniors across the country entered this year’s contest by taking the 2021 Preliminary SAT/ National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test last October. Last month, the field was narrowed down to just over 16,000 of the top scorers nationwide.

Almost half of those students in the valley attend Clark, a magnet school specializing in programs such as math, science or performing arts.

Five of Clark’s semifinalists — Melodie Cin, Grace Hwang, Samuel Hwang, Edwin Ma and Hannah Pham — each also received a perfect score on their ACT earlier this year.

“Getting the National Merit Scholarship was definitely one of my goals since freshman year,” semifinalist Sanjana Dixit said. “Both of my sisters didn’t get the chance to get it, I definitely felt the pressure so getting this meant a big deal to me.”

To qualify as a National Merit semifinalist, students needed to demonstrate an outstanding academic record, be endorsed and recommended by a high school official, write an essay and have good SAT scores on the qualifying test.

On the day of the test, semifinalist Kennedy Jamison pointed to the breakfast that her mother prepared for her as contributing to her more relaxed mindset ahead of taking the test.

“I wasn’t so stressed about it,” she said. “Which I think is honestly the way to go.”

Tina Gridiron, the vice president of ACT’s Center for Equity in Learning, said earlier this year that, when it comes to test-taking, it’s important for schools to provide adequate supports such as a rigorous curriculum, study halls and computers to access test preparation, on top of family support and structure like reliable transportation or a reminder to students to eat breakfast that day.

To advance as a finalist, each semifinalist will complete an application outlining their academics, participation in school and community extracurricular activities, leadership abilities, employment, and various honors and awards.

“Despite the pandemic-related impacts on academic performance, CCSD students are competing nationally to be recognized for their outstanding contributions and achievements,” Superintendent Jesus Jara said in a statement Wednesday. “These National Merit Semifinalists make us proud, and I wish our semifinalists continued success in their future endeavors.”

Complete list of National Merit semifinalists in Clark County

Advanced Technologies Academy

– Calvin J. Cheam

– Jonathan E. Fenton

– Dorothy Hua

– Sovannjet Lim

– Sean C. O-Lee

– Royce Ortega

– Nicholas A. Rodriguez

– Olivia J. Spiller

Arbor View High School

– Parker Henry