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Smith, Watts Named National Merit Semifinalists

Smith, Watts Named National Merit Semifinalists

Owasso High School seniors Abram Smith and Jeremiah Watts were named by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation as being among the approximately 16,000 Semifinalists in the 70th annual National Merit Scholarship Program, it was announced today.

Smith and Watts will have an opportunity to continue in the competition for some 6,870 National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $26 million that will be offered in 2025. 

“We are incredibly proud of Abram and Jeremiah’s commitment in the classroom and dedication to academic excellence,” OPS Superintendent Dr. Margaret Coates said. “This achievement is a testament to their hard work and we are thrilled to see those efforts recognized on a national level.”

High school juniors entered the 2025 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2023 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.

To become a Finalist, the Semifinalist and a high school official must submit a detailed scholarship application, in which they provide information about the Semifinalist’s academic record, participation in school and community activities, demonstrated leadership abilities, employment, and honors and awards received. A Semifinalist must have an outstanding academic record throughout high school, be endorsed and recommended by a high school official, write an essay and SAT or ACT scores that confirm the student’s earlier performance on the qualifying test.

All National Merit Scholarship winners will be selected from the group of Finalists, which will be announced in February 2025. Merit Scholar designees are selected on the basis of their skills, accomplishments, and potential for success in rigorous college studies, without regard to gender, race, ethnic origin, or religious preference.

National Merit Scholarship winners of 2025 will be announced in four nationwide news releases beginning in April and concluding in July. These scholarship recipients will join more than 382,000 other distinguished young people who have earned the Merit Scholar title.