Hoover, Lincoln, Roosevelt Seniors Named National Merit Finalists

2016-Merit-FinalistsEleven high school seniors from Hoover, Lincoln and Roosevelt high schools have been chosen as 2016 Finalists for the National Merit Scholarship, placing them among the top young scholars in the state and nation. The Des Moines students were selected based on their strong performance on the Preliminary SAT (PSAT) test taken last year.

“From academics to the arts to athletics, we have amazing students throughout the district who succeed at so many different things, and it’s a great honor for these students to earn national recognition for their knowledge and intelligence,” said Superintendent Tom Ahart. “They join a long list of DMPS students who have earned this national honor in recognition of their academic prowess.”

The students are:

  • Isabel Allaway, Roosevelt
  • Matthew Bourland, Hoover
  • Akanksha Chilukuri, Roosevelt
  • Helena Gruensteidl, Roosevelt
  • William Gunderson, Roosevelt
  • Zachary Lin, Roosevelt
  • Margaret Norland, Roosevelt
  • Bryan Richter, Lincoln
  • Nathan Rider, Hoover
  • Andrew Shumway, Roosevelt
  • John Wahlig, Roosevelt

Finalists are now eligible to receive college scholarships of at least $2,500 from the National Merit Scholarship organization or their corporate sponsors. Scholarship recipients will be announced in April. Of the 1.5 million students who take the PSAT, only about 16,000 enter the Semi-Finalist level of the competition and approximately 15,000 are recognized as Finalists.

In the 60+ year history of the National Merit Scholarship Program, nearly 500 Semi-Finalists have attended Des Moines Public Schools.