9 USC Seniors Named National Merit Scholarship Finalists

UPPER ST. CLAIR, PA — Nine Upper St. Clair High School seniors are finalists in the 2022 National Merit Scholarship Program. Bear K. Bottonari, Phoebe M. Chen, Sophie C. Chen, Alex J. LeKachman, Eden L. Ma, Molly C. Maher, Kaelyn G. Moran, Nivedha A. Suresh and Daniel J. Wang were selected on the basis of their SAT scores, grades, essays and letters of recommendation.

In September 2021, these Upper St. Clair students were named semifinalists in the competition for scoring in the top one percent of all juniors completing the PSAT in October 2020.

“Our nine National Merit Finalists are accomplished scholars with unlimited potential,” high school principal Timothy Wagner said in a district release. “We are incredibly proud of their achievements within and beyond the classroom and are excited to see what the future holds for each of them.”

Founded in 1955, the National Merit Scholarship Program is an academic competition for recognition and scholarships. Students enter the National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the PSAT – the National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test – during the fall of their junior year. The top one percent (nearly 16,000 students) qualify as Semifinalists.

The USC students are competing for National Merit Scholarships that will be awarded this spring. The program awards three types of scholarships: National Merit $2,500 Scholarships, Corporate-Sponsored Merit Scholarships and College-Sponsored Merit Scholarships.

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