Two talented young people from the Saucon Valley have been named National Merit semifinalists, officials from the National Merit Scholarship Corporation announced earlier this month.
Allentown Central Catholic High School senior Molly Gibson has been named a National Merit Semifinalist. Gibson resides in Lower Saucon Township. (Contributed photo)
Saucon Valley High School student Louis Flowers and Allentown Central Catholic High School student Molly Gibson were both named to the prestigious list of semifinalists, which is based on how students performed on the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT). Both Lower Saucon Township residents, Flowers and Gibson represent less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors and rank among the highest scorers in Pennsylvania, the release said. Two other local residents, Saucon Valley High School students James Gill and Ryan Wang, were also recognized for their test scores with National Merit Commended status.
Flowers and Gibson now 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 percent of the semifinalists are expected to attain finalist standing, and approximately half of the finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship, the news release said.