Francis HowellHigh School

The Francis Howell School District is proud to announce that eight FHSD students have been named Semifinalists in the 2018 National Merit Scholarship Program. These seniors are among 16,000 Semifinalists chosen as part of the annual academic competition. The Semifinalists, who were selected based on scores on a PSAT qualifying test, will compete for some 7,500 scholarships worth more than $32 million, to be awarded this spring. The FHSD Semifinalists are:

“We are very proud of our high school students who perform so well on the PSAT and qualify to be included in this prestigious group,” said Superintendent Dr. Mary Hendricks-Harris. “This is a very rigorous process, and they still have much work to do in order to be selected as finalists. We also appreciate that these scholarships are based on more than just test scores, and these students are all very active in their schools and community as well.”  

The nationwide pool of Semifinalists represents less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors and includes the highest-scoring entrants in each state. To become a Finalist, these students must submit a detailed scholarship application, which includes information about their academic record, participation is school and community activities, leadership abilities, employment, and honors and awards received. A Semifinalist must have an outstanding academic record throughout high school, be endorsed by a high school administrator, write an essay, and earn an SAT score that confirms the earlier test performance.

In addition to scholarships awarded by the non-profit National Merit Scholarship Program, more than 200 corporations will provide about 1,000 corporate-sponsored awards. Colleges and universities will finance some 4,000 college-sponsored Merit Scholarship awards for Finalists who will attend the sponsor institution.