TJ Senior Robin Emerson and South’s Casey Delanoy considered for top scholarship.
by Jasmine Kabera
photo by Manny Perez
Imagine competing against 1.5 million different students. TJ seniors Robin Emerson and Casey Delanoy had to do just that to achieve Commended Students status in the National Merit Scholarship Program.
Emerson and Delanoy (who attended TJ her first three years and transferred to South high school earlier this year), along with 34,000 other students throughout the nation, were recognized for exhibiting academic excellence when they were first considered candidates for the scholarship. Afterwards, competition heated up when Emerson and Delanoy were drawn from a small pool of the 2.26% of those commended students. That’s only 34.5% of the original 1.5 million. Principal Sandra Just will present a Letter of Commendation from TJ and the National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC), which conducts the program, to both the seniors.
“It was an honor,” said Emerson. “Even though I wasn’t chosen as the winner, I was recognized as a commended student and received a certificate, so it’s a good thing to put on a college application.” The senior is all set to attend the Colorado School of Mines in the fall of 2009.
The National Merit Scholarship Committee recognizes commended students’ abilities, skills, and accomplishments. The committee looked carefully at the students’ academic records: two sets of standard test scores (PSAT), recommendations, and any information about their activities and leadership roles the seniors may have held.
Beginning in March 2008 and continuing to mid-June 2008, the NMSC notified 8,200 finalists that they had been selected to receive one of three types of the Merit Scholarship awards – many of which are corporate sponsored.
“Recognition of academically talented students and the key role played by schools in their development is essential to the pursuit of educational excellence in our nation,” commented a spokesperson for NMSC. “The young people named Commended Students have demonstrated outstanding academic potential by their strong performance in this highly competitive program. We hope that this recognition will enhance their educational opportunities and that they will continue to diligently pursue their professional goals.”
