The National Merit Scholarship program released a list of Semifinalists and Commended students for 2019 on Sept. 12. Nineteen of those students are seniors at Kirkwood High School.

The scholarship is selected based on the students Preliminary SAT (PSAT) scores from the year prior. Those who were named Semifinalists now have the chance to be chosen as National Merit Scholarships Finalists after completing a more extensive application, consisting of the student’s academic record, extracurricular activities, service and more.

Approximately 16,000 of the 1.6 million juniors who took the PSAT were named National Merit Semifinalist. According to the scholarships website, 15,000 of those students will move on to the title of Finalist.

Commended Students: Fraye Beyene, Bella Borbonus, Brendan Davidson, Cece Herwig, Francie Huisinga, Abigail Imiolek, Brett Rog, Lilly Schlarman and Seth Wiseheart

Semifinalists: Thomas Birmingham, Elias Boshara, Kenan Dogan, Jared Goudsmit, Emma Harrell, Nolan Hauck, Meredith Lang, Hannah Mitchell, Ellie Nash and Sarah Vreeland