Six Hillcrest students named National Merit Semi-finalists

Six Hillcrest seniors were recently named National Merit Semifinalists in the 57th annual National Merit Scholarship Program, out of more than 1.5 million students who entered the competition.

These scholars are joined with about 16,000 other semifinalists who will take the SAT standardized college-prep exam to determine their final standings. The Hillcrest scholars are Ryan T. Baker, Mairin R. Buckley, Lauren M. Carter, Pierce O. Darragh, Dale W. Fox and Brian J. Gould.

These seniors will compete for about 8,400 National Merit Scholarships, worth more than $36 million, Hillcrest Principal Susan Malone said. In addition, students are also evaluated on their academics, essays and recommendation letters. Many schools independently offer their own scholarships based on students’ standings, scores and academic records, in addition to the other scholarships.

For Mairin, schools have already been sending her letters, offering to waive the application fee.

“I have received a lot more attention from schools once I learned I was a semifinalist,” she said. “I want to go to [Brigham Young University] since it’s a good school and it’s close by my family.”

Mairin is planning to study neuroscience and participate in dance, as she has done with dance company at Hillcrest. She’s also involved with the school’s musical, National Honors Society and is a Lincoln-Douglas debater with the school’s debate team. Outside of school, she’s involved in her church and Sandy Special Needs Mutual, which buddies her up with a special needs child.

Dale said that he was happy to learn through a letter that his score on the PSAT standardized exam for juniors was good enough to qualify him for the semifinalist standing. He hopes to attend his dad’s alma mater, the University of Kansas, where he will study engineering and participate in the marching band, as a drummer.

“It’s an honor to be in the semifinalist standing,” he said. “But, we still have our homework and I’m really busy in the music program.”

Dale plays in the concert and jazz bands and is president of the percussion ensemble. He will also be playing drums in the school musical. He is an eagle scout who helped his church with service projects for the Salvation Army.

“We typically have four or five students who are named semi-finalists,” Principal Malone said. “Some other district schools may only have two or less. I think this is a compliment to our students and teachers.”

She also credits counselors for having many students prepare for the standardized tests during their sophomore year.

Five other Hillcrest students were announced as commended scholars: Colton R. Allred, Kassaundra L. Amann, Whitney M. Hales, Kevin T. Holmes and Jeffrey D. Todd.