Fourteen National Merit Semifinalists for 2008

Fourteen seniors in the Issaquah School District were recognized this week as semifinalists in the 2008 National Merit Scholarship Program. They join a national pool of about 16,000 students, which represents less than 1 percent of U.S. high school seniors, who became semifinalists by being the top scorers on the 2006 Preliminary SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Test).

These seniors now have the opportunity to continue in the competition to compete for 8,200 scholarships from colleges and corporate sponsors, worth a combined $34 million, that will be offered next spring. To become a finalist, a semifinalist must submit evidence of an outstanding academic and civic record in high school, be endorsed and recommended by the school principal, and earn SAT scores that confirm the student's earlier test performance.

Scholarships are awarded to finalists based on their skill, accomplishments, and potential for success in college studies. Winners will be announced in four waves beginning next April and ending in July.

Issaquah's National Merit Scholarship semifinalists are:

• Rachel M. Chin, Issaquah High
• Sarah Dulin, Skyline High
• Jay M. Farber, Skyline High
• James D. Henderson, Issaquah High
• Alicia I. Kim, Skyline High
• Amy F. Loreen, Liberty High
• Amanda K. Murdock, Issaquah High
• Benjamin N. Nield, Issaquah High
• Erik D. Posch, Liberty High
• Nicholas R. Rosellini, Issaquah High
• Bradley H. Sherman, Skyline High
• Charles Y. Wang, Skyline High
• James Weng, Issaquah High
• Melody Wu, Skyline High