Bellefontaine senior Samuel Moreland has been recognized for his academic excellence as a National Merit Scholar Finalist.
He qualified as a National Merit Scholar semifinalist in September. Samuel was one of approximately 16,000 semifinalists in the 67th annual National Merit Scholarship Program.
He entered the 2022 National Merit Scholar Program by taking the 2020 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) administered to interested juniors at Bellefontaine High School.
The nationwide pool of semifinalists represents less than 1 percent of U.S. high school seniors, including the highest-scoring entrants in each state. These academically talented students will have an opportunity to compete for 7,500 National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $30 million that will be offered in the coming months.
Several requirements must be fulfilled to attain finalist standing. These include a detailed scholarship application that showcased Samuel’s academic record, participation in school and community activities, demonstrated leadership abilities, employment, and honors and awards received.
A son of Thomas and Rachel Moreland, Samuel now moves onto the final stage where about half of those reaching Finalist status will win a National Merit Scholarship and earn the title of Merit Scholar.
Samuel is the 42nd National Merit Scholar Finalist at BHS, dating back to 1957 when Bellefontaine joined the program (the program started in 1955).
Also, BHS has had 14 National Merit Commended students and six National Achievement Commended and Finalist students. (The National Achievement Program ran from 1965-2015).
“We are so proud to have had such highly elite students walk the halls of BHS,” Bellefontaine City Schools Gifted Coordinator and AP Coordinator Angie Horvath said.
“It is a true testament to the strength of BCS’ academic programming and long-standing tradition of prioritizing gifted education.”
The National Merit Scholarship Corporation is a not-for-profit organization that operates without government assistance. Scholarships are underwritten by NMSC with their own funds and approximately 400 businesses and higher education institutions that share the goal of honoring the nation’s scholastic champions and encouraging the pursuit of academic excellence.
National Merit Scholarship winners of 2022 will be announced in four nationwide news releases beginning in April and concluding in July.