10 Homewood students among National Merit Semifinalists

The National Merit Semifinalists for 2018 include 10 Homewood high-achieving students, among 16,000 semifinalists nationwide.

The National Merit program is based on PSAT scores and high school performance, with about 34,000 students reaching Commended status in addition to the 16,000 semifinalists. Semifinalists can choose to compete for finalist status by earning a high score on the SAT, maintaining their grades and submitting an application, including an endorsement from their principal.

Eight Homewood High School students were named semifinalists: Samuel Bates, Hunter Callaway, Colin Clifton, Robert Gaddis, Jane Ann Langford, Stanford Massie, Hrithik Praveen and Harrison Wingo. Additionally, two Homewood residents at the Jefferson County International Baccalaureate School, Julia and Margaret Neely, were also named semifinalists.

The students will find out in February if they are National Merit Finalists. Reaching finalist status allows them to compete for about 7,500 scholarships from the National Merit organization, but many universities also offer scholarships for the different levels of National Merit recognition.