Seniors Hayes Bloomsmith, Kevin Hilinski, and Emma Wernecke scored the highest of the 11 students recognized for their outstanding PSAT scores from their junior year. To celebrate their achievement, the guidance counselors organized a reception for them during 7th period in the Career Center at the end of October. Invited guests included parents and Principal Audrey Toney.

“These three semifinalists are all in competition for a scholarship, and they all could win one,” guidance counselor Connie Patterson said.

The National Merit Scholarship Corporation is a non-profit organization that recognizes students for their high PSAT scores and academic excellence. The NMSC’s goal is to honor America’s top scholastic champions and to give them an opportunity to win scholarships, which can range from $1,000 to a full scholarship for the colleges and universities that support the merit scholarship.

“To compete for [the scholarship], they have to go through an application process and get recommendations,” Patterson said. The students were among 16,000 students recognized nationwide. The students are required to take the PSAT sophomore and junior years.

The semifinalists prepared for the PSAT with the prep booklet and also took SAT classes. Hilinski took the PSAT the required years,  which differs from Bloomsmith and Wernecke, who both said they took the PSAT every year that they could. “I did the prep book from the College Board, and I took three or four practice tests just to be sure [of getting a good score],” Wernecke said.

They aren’t the only students recognized at the reception.

“I was so excited to be recognized at a reception and to have a chance to compete with some very intelligent students,” senior Taylor Brunskole said. The Brunskole brothers are among 1,600 African-American high school students recognized for their scores in the National Achievement Scholarship Program. The brothers prepared well for the PSAT, taking it their freshman, sophomore, and junior years. “I took it all the years that I was allowed to and [studied] all I could have,” David Brunskole said.

The PSAT can make students nervous and that can cause them to mess up, but Taylor had suggestions for keeping calm during the test.  “Don’t second guess yourself, get a good night’s sleep, and have a great breakfast,” said Taylor, who is already committed to Auburn University. David is going to Brown University.

Also recognized for their high PSAT scores were seniors Mira Bookman, Cody Clements, Joe Merna, Lexi Nails, Kelly O’Shaughnessy, and Brooke Underwood. They will not have an opportunity to compete for a scholarship, but they each received a letter of recognition for their scores.

“I was not very disappointed because I studied and prepared all I could have for the test,” Merna said.