5 Bend students receive National Merit Semifinalist honors
Five Bend-La Pine Schools students have earned top academic recognition as National Merit Semi-Finalists. Mountain View High School students Liliana Conrad, Liam Crafton, Ethan Graham and Caleb Meyers and Summit High School student Ryan Doering are among the more than 160 students in Oregon to earn this prestigious distinction from the National Merit Scholarship Program.
“We offer our congratulations to these students and applaud their commitment to pursuing academic excellence,” said Superintendent Shay Mikalson.
Liliana Conrad – Mountain View
Liliana loves art and music. She plays violin for the school orchestra and guitar and ukulele at home. She enjoys sketching and digital art. She also likes computer science and programming. She is considering a career in astrophysics or computer science.
Liam Crafton – Mountain View
Liam is very interested in math and robotics. He also enjoys participating in community service projects through Interact Club and National Honor Society, including helping in shelters and personal tutoring. Liam also runs cross country. He would like to pursue a career in scientific research and hopes to start as an applied math major.
Ryan Doering – Summit
Ryan would like to become an engineer and is exploring what kind of engineering – civil, nuclear power or mechanical. He has always loved math and enjoys the hands-on aspect of engineering. Ryan also enjoys Nordic skiing. He says he enjoyed having teachers who helped support him during his time at Summit.
Ethan Graham – Mountain View
Ethan loves playing piano and working on technical projects in his free time, like building a hydroponic system for his family’s vegetable garden. Ethan enjoys remote control planes and has always been very interested in astronautical engineering and hopes to pursue a career in that field.
Caleb Meyers – Mountain View
Caleb likes to build computers from the ground up, which he says is like working with a complicated Lego set. He also likes to play the cello and fly remote control planes. In the future, Caleb would like to go into software or computer engineering.
About National Merit Program
Of the more than 1.6 million high school students who took the Preliminary SAT (PSAT), 16,000 ‑ about 1 percent ‑ are recognized as National Merit Semifinalists. The nationwide pool represents the highest scoring entrants from each state.
Finalists from this group will be selected in February. To become a finalist, the semifinalist and his or her high school 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. Finalists will be considered for National Merit Scholarships, which will be announced in the spring of 2018.
For more information about the program, visit www.nationalmerit.org.
KTVZ 2019
