Laguna Beach High School seniors Grant Barton and Aviva Meyers were named among 16,000 semifinalists in the 60th annual National Merit Scholarship Program, the organization announced Tuesday.
Semifinalists go on to compete for 7,600 scholarships worth $33 million that will be offered next spring. Finalists must submit a detailed application in order to earn the financial award and the Merit Scholar title.
About 1.4 million juniors in 22,000 high schools nationwide took the qualifying test. Semifinalists represent less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors and includes the highest-scoring entrants in each state, the program says in a statement.
