National Merit Scholarship Semifinalists receive recognition

By Arjun Swaminathan and Isabel Dibble

CHS honored its National Merit Scholarship Semifinalists for their performance on the 2014 PSAT on Sept. 11.

Out of the 1.5 million juniors nationally who take the PSAT, only 16000 are selected for this recognition. As much as 32 million dollars in scholarships are handed out as rewards for student performance.

“I wasn’t expecting it, but I’m very happy to receive this honor,” senior Benjamin Hwang said.

In Maryland, the cutoff score for this recognition on the PSAT is about 230, which is relatively high when compared to the rest of the nation.

“I am bursting with pride because of the commitment and hard work of these students,” Principal Joan Benz said. “This is a great prediction of their future success in college and in life.”