15 National Merit Semifinalists In Mid-Hudson Valley Chosen For 2024

MID-HUDSON VALLEY, NY — The National Merit Scholarship Corporation announced the names of over 16,000 semifinalists in the 69th annual National Merit Scholarship Program Wednesday, including 15 from the mid-Hudson Valley.

These high school seniors have an opportunity to continue in the competition for some 7,140 National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $28 million that will be offered next spring.

They entered the 2023 National Merit Scholarship Program as juniors by taking the 2022 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. The group, representing less than one 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.

To be considered for a Merit Scholarship® award, semifinalists must fulfill several requirements to advance to the Finalist level of the competition. About 95 percent of the semifinalists are expected to attain finalist standing, and about half of the finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship, earning the Merit Scholar® title.

NMSC, a not-for-profit organization that operates without government assistance, was
established in 1955 specifically to conduct the annual National Merit Scholarship Program.
Scholarships are underwritten by NMSC with its own funds and by approximately 320 business
organizations and higher education institutions that share NMSC’s goals of honoring the nation’s
scholastic champions and encouraging the pursuit of academic excellence.

The local semifinalists from the mid-Hudson Valley are:

CENTRAL VALLEY

Monroe Woodbury High School

• Buragohain, Anushree

HIGHLAND

Highland High School

• Dong, Alice

HIGHLAND FALLS

James I. O'Neill High School

• Lemler, Grant

HOPEWELL JUNCTION

John Jay High School

• Mohammed, Naflah F.
• Zhu, Alex D.

KINGSTON H. S.

• Dong, Peter
• Safford, Alexi

NEW PALTZ

New Paltz Central High School

• Eyler, Mason M.

PINE BUSH

Pine Bush High School

• Valentino, Saige A.

POUGHKEEPSIE

Spackenkill High School

• Daley, Caelyn A.
• Lu, Sarah

RED HOOK

Red Hook Central High School

• Ostfeld, Benjamin K.

RHINEBECK

Rhinebeck Central School

• Alam, Laila S.

WAPPINGERS FALLS

Roy C. Ketcham High School

• Newman, Richard

WARWICK

Warwick Valley High School

• Gell, Ava R.