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Lauren Thacker Named Semifinalist in National Merit Scholarship Program

Senior earns place in prestigious national scholar program
GPS was recently notified that Lauren Thacker, Class of 2022, has been named a Semifinalist in the National Merit Scholarship Program.

“We are very proud of Lauren for her exceptional character and leadership,” says Head of School Megan Cover. “She is an outstanding representative of our senior class and greater school community.”   

As juniors, the GPS Class of 2022 took the 2020 PSAT/NMSQT, which served as the initial screen of nearly 1 million entrants to the 2022 National Merit Scholarship Program. According to the program, the Selection Index scores of students who met program participation requirements were used to designate a pool of approximately 16,000 Semifinalists nationwide on a state allocation basis. 

Semifinalists are the highest scorers in each of the 50 states and represent fewer than one percent of each state’s high school seniors. 

Lauren will now continue in the competition to become a Finalist with the opportunity to receive a National Merit Scholarship in the spring. To become a Finalist, she will have to submit a detailed scholarship application that includes information about her academic successes, her extracurricular pursuits, her leadership abilities, and more. 

In February 2022, some 15,000 Semifinalists will be notified by mail at their home addresses that they have advanced to Finalist standing. From March to mid-June, NMSC notifies approximately 7,600 Finalists that they have been selected to receive a Merit Scholarship award.

Congratulations, Lauren! 
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