Life on Himes Semifi nalists (L-R) Ben Miller ’17, John Mace ’17, Royal Doolittle ’17, and Drew Valenti ’17 National Merit Scholars our seniors at Jesuit High School F have been named National Merit Semifi nalists, Jesuit principal Barry Neuburger announced at a special Convocation ceremony in September. Royal Doolittle, John Mace, Ben Miller, and Drew Valenti are among the approximately 16,000 Semifi nalists nationwide in the prestigious National Merit Scholarship Program. Semifi nalists are selected based on their PSAT scores, a standardized test administered nationwide their junior year. Over the past four years, Jesuit has had 19 Semifi nalists. The qualifying standard on the PSAT for Florida students to be Semifi nalists rose from 214 last year to 217 this year, as the standard can vary from state-to-state each year. In addition to the four National Merit Semifi nalists, 20 more Jesuit seniors tested in the top 1% nationally on the PSAT. They are: William Yount, Justin Virgadamo, Spencer Wallace, 6 JESUIT PERSPECTIVES • WINTER 2016-17 24 Jesuit seniors tested in the top 1% on the PSAT Mike Swenson, Brice Sewell, Ray Petrus, Nick Palmiero, Trayer Musselman, Blake Motzer, Matthew Mosiello, Sal Lumia, Hugh Hickman, Jack Hermes, Luke Hasara, Russell Groscurth, Cullen Finley, Ty Deming, Daniel Castillo, Gabriel Brown, and Brandon Bailey. The four Semifi nalists will continue in the pursuit of some 7,500 National Merit Scholarships worth about $33 million that will be offered next spring. To be considered for a Merit Scholarship award, Semifi nalists must fulfi ll several requirements to advance to the Finalist level of the competition. About 90 percent of the Semifi nalists are expected to attain Finalist standing, and more than half of the Finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship, earning the Merit Scholar title.
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