13 seniors from region compete for National Merit scholarships

STAFF REPORT

YOUNGSTOWN — More than a dozen area high school seniors have been named National Merit Scholarship Semifinalists.

They are among 16,000 students from across the country in the 55th annual National Merit Scholarship Program and have a chance to compete for some 8,200 scholarships worth more than $36 million that will be offered next spring.

They will be required to fulfill several requirements to advance to the finalist level.

More than 1.5 million high school juniors entered the 2010 program by taking the 2008 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test.

The 16,000 semifinalists represent less than 1 percent of U.S. high school seniors and represent the highest-scoring entrants from each state.

To become a finalist, students must have an outstanding academic record, be endorsed and recommended by their high school principal and earn SAT scores that confirm their performance on the qualifying test.

The local semifinalists are:

OHIO

Donald J DeSanto, Yahui Li and Emma D. Shebat of Canfield High School.

Shaun A. Hardin and John K. Rostom of Howland High School.

Lauren E. Johnson, home school.

Ali S. Azeem of Boardman High School.

Luka Spahija of Cardinal Mooney High School.

Qizhou Ge and Michael A. Goldthwait of Ursuline High School.

PENNSYLVANIA

Michael J. Enck of Greenville High School.

Kristina F. Miller of Grove City High School.

Solvejg H. Wastvedt of Wilmington Area High School.