EVANSTON, Ill. — Officials of National Merit Scholarship Corporation on Sept. 9 announced the names of approximately 16,000 semifinalists in the 61st annual National Merit Scholarship Program.
These academically talented National Merit Scholarships worth more than $32 million that will be offered next spring.
To be considered for a Merit Scholarship award, semifinalists must fulfill several requirements to advance to the finalist level of the competition. About 90 percent of the semifinalists are expected to attain finalist standing, and about half of the finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship.
About 1.5 million juniors in more than 22,000 high schools entered the 2016 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2014 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT), which served as an initial screen of program entrants.
The nationwide pool of semifinalists, representing less than 1 percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the highest-scoring entrants in each state. The number of semifinalists in a state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the national total of graduating seniors.
For more information, visit www.nationalmerit.org.
California semifinalists include (alphabetical by city):
Alhambra — Grant G. Shimada, Mark Keppel High School
Irvine — Rachel K. Sawada, Arnold O. Beckman High School; Samantha M. Haraguchi, Northwood High School
La Canada — Clarence M. Nakano, Flintridge Preparatory School
Los Altos — Samuel H. Morimoto, Los Altos High School
Los Gatos — Koji Kusumi, Los Gatos High School
Manhattan Beach — Tanner Z. Yamada, Mira Costa High School
Newport Beach — Robert R. Naruse, Corona Del Mar High School
Pacific Palisades — Yuko Nakano, Palisades Charter High School
Palo Alto — Anna H. Nakai, Palo Alto High School
Redding — Yuta Kato, homeschool
Rolling Hills Estates — Ryan H. Mori, Palos Verdes Peninsula High School
San Diego — Hannah Y. Oikawa, Westview High School
San Mateo — Jeffrey T. Kishiyama, Aragon High School
Simi Valley — Robert I. Ota, Royal High School
Studio City — Cole Y. Kawana, Harvard-Westlake School
Westlake Village — Donovan W. Tokuyama, Westlake High School