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Recently, the National Merit Scholarship Corporation announced the Semifinalists in the 70th annual National Merit Scholarship Program based on last year’s PSAT scores. LM is extremely proud to have 2 National Merit Semifinalists this year, Kay Beidler and Simeon Spurrier!
These academically talented high school seniors have an opportunity to continue in the competition for some 6,870 National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $26 million that will be offered next spring. To be considered for a Merit Scholarship award, semifinalists must fulfill several requirements to advance to the finalist level of the competition, About 95% of the semifinalists are expected to attain Finalist standing, and approximately half of the Finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship, earning the Merit Scholar title.
Over 1.3 million juniors took the PSAT last year and only 16,000 of them made it to the semifinalist round based on their strong PSAT score from last year. Both Kay and Simeon will now be invited into the application process for the finalist round with the hopes of earning a college scholarship. Congratulations to both Kay and Simeon on this milestone accomplishment!
It was also announced that Lancaster Mennonite senior, Rachel Landes has been named a Commended Student in the 2025 National Merit Scholarship Program. A Letter of Commendation from Lancaster Mennonite School and National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC), which conducts the program, was presented to this scholastically talented senior.
This year about 34,000 Commended Students throughout the nation are being recognized for their exceptional academic promise. Although they will not continue in the 2025 competition for National Merit Scholarship awards, Commended Students placed among the top 50,000 students who entered the 2025 competition by taking the 2023 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®).
“Those being named Commended Students have demonstrated outstanding potential for academic success,” commented a spokesperson for NMSC. “These students represent a valuable national resource; recognizing their accomplishments, as well as the key role their schools play in their academic development, is vital to the advancement of educational excellence in our nation. We hope that this recognition will help broaden their educational opportunities and encourage them as they continue their pursuit of academic success.”
