MSMS is pleased to announce 12 members of the Class of 2017 have been named National Merit Semifinalists (ten-percent of the senior class!). The National Merit Semifinalists are Nayan Chawla, Daniel Cieslinksi, Chris Colley, Raven Ferguson, Braeden Foldenauer, Emily Hook, Haley Hsu, Uriah Jenkins, Sutton Klein, Alex Leise, Lauryn Smith, and Andy Zhao.
- Nayan Chawla, originally from Cleveland, Mississippi, is the son of Dinesh and Parveen Chawla. Before coming to MSMS, he was a student at Cleveland High School.
- Daniel Cieslinski, originally from Lucedale, Mississippi, is the son of Anca Cochran. Before coming to MSMS, he was a student at George County High School.
- Chris Colley, originally from Oxford, Mississippi, is the son of Carol Cleveland. Before coming to MSMS, he was a student at Oxford High School.
- Raven Ferguson, originally from Monticello, Mississippi, is the daughter of Melvin and Kristi Pittman. Before coming to MSMS, she was a student at Lawrence County High School.
- Braeden Foldenauer, originally from Olive Branch, Mississippi, is the son of Jacob and Tracey Foldenauer. Before attending MSMS, he was a student at Lewisburg High School.
- Emily Hook, originally from Olive Branch, Mississippi, is the daughter of Jeffery Hook and Kathleen Flanagan. Before attending MSMS, she was a homeschooled student.
- Haley Hsu, originally from Horn Lake, Mississippi, is the daughter of Chi Hsu and Zuo Jin. Before attending MSMS, she was a student at Lake Cormorant High School.
- Uriah Jenkins, originally from Sumrall, Mississippi, is the son of Perry and Tessa Jenkins. Before attending MSMS, he was a student at Sumrall High School.
- Sutton Klein, originally from Madison, Mississippi, is the daughter of Allan and Ashley Klein. Before attending MSMS, she was a student at St. Joseph Catholic School.
- Alex Leise, originally from Lake Cormorant, Mississippi, is the son of Robert and Kalinda Leise. Before attending MSMS, he was a student at Lake Cormorant High School.
- Lauryn Smith, originally from Meridian, Mississippi, is the daughter of Willard Smith and Kimberly Sutton. Before attending MSMS, she was a student at Meridian High School.
- Andy Zhao, originally from Horn Lake, Mississippi, is the son of Qiong Zheng and Rong Zhao. Before attending MSMS, he was a student at Lake Cormorant High School.
About 1.6 million juniors in more than 22,000 high schools entered the 2017 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2015 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of Semifinalists, representing less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the highest scoring entrants in each state. The number of Semifinalists in a state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the national total of graduating seniors. Of those who competed for Semifinalist status, only 16,000 were chosen.
The 2017 National Merit Scholarship Program has named an additional six students Commended Students. These students are Noah Hunt, Achintya Prasad, Wrishija Roy, Emily Shy, Claudia Vial, and Baili Zhong.
- Noah Hunt, originally from Saltillo, Mississippi, is the son of Todd and Melissa Hunt. Before attending MSMS, he was a student at Tupelo High School.
- Achintya Prasad, originally from Belden, Mississippi, is the daughter of Amit and Sunita Prasad. Before attending MSMS, she was a student at Tupelo High School.
- Wrishija Roy, originally from Columbus, Mississippi, is the daughter of Jiben and Rita Roy. Before attending MSMS, she was a student at Columbus High School.
- Emily Shy, originally from Bolivar, Mississippi, is the daughter of Todd and Jennifer Shy. Before attending MSMS, she was a student at Cleveland High School.
- Claudia Vial, originally from Laurel, Mississippi, is the daughter of Fred and Celeste Vial. Before attending MSMS, she was a student at Presbyterian Christian School.
- Baili Zhong, originally from Southaven, Mississippi, is the son of Gen Zhong and Yong Zhou. Before attending MSMS, he was a student at Southaven High School.
According to the National Merit Scholarship Corporation, about 34,000 students were named Commended and are being recognized for their exceptional academic promise. Although they will not continue in the 2017 competion for National Merit Scholarship awards, Commended Students are placed among the top five percent of the more than 1.6 million students who entered into the 2017 competition.
MSMS would like to extend congratulations to all of these outstanding young men and women and deep thanks to their home schools for preparing them for true academic excellence!