School Zone
Three Duval County Public Schools Students Receive National Achievement Scholarships
The National Achievement Scholarship Program recently announced that three Duval County Public Schools’ (DCPS) students were among more than 800 National Achievement Scholarship recipients. These outstanding Black American high school students will receive scholarships totaling nearly $2.6 million. The awards, which may be used for undergraduate study at any regionally accredited U.S. college or university, are being underwritten by 40 corporate organizations and professional associations, and by National Merit Scholarship Corporation.
“I am very proud of the hard work and dedication these students have shown,” said Ed Pratt-Dannals, Superintendent of Duval County Public Schools. “I congratulate them on this outstanding achievement, and wish them all the best as they move forward to their collegiate careers.”
All DCPS’ Achievement Scholar designees will receive National Achievement® $2,500 scholarships. All finalists in the 2009 competition were considered for these single-payment scholarships, which were awarded on a regional representation basis, in numbers proportional to the population of Black Americans in each geographic region.
The National Achievement Scholarship Program is a privately financed academic competition established in 1964 specifically to honor scholastically talented Black American youth, and to provide scholarships to a substantial number of the most outstanding participants in each annual competition. The 2009 program marks 45 annual competitions in which more than 29,500 participants will have received scholarships worth more than $93 million. The program is conducted by National Merit Scholarship Corporation, a not-for-profit organization that operates without government assistance.
2009 National Achievement Scholarship Competition
More than 150,000 students entered the 2009 National Achievement Scholarship Competition by requesting consideration when they took the 2007 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®) as high school juniors. In September 2008, approximately 1,600 of the highest scorers were named semifinalists on a regional representation basis. To continue in the competition, semifinalists had to fulfill requirements for finalist standing, which included having a record of consistently high academic performance; being endorsed and recommended by an official of their high school; earning SAT scores that confirm their PSAT/NMSQT performance; and submitting an essay about personal interests, attainments and goals.
Some 1,300 semifinalists advanced to the finalist level, and all National Achievement Scholarship winners were selected from this group of outstanding students. Achievement Scholar awardees are the finalist candidates judged to have the strongest record of accomplishments and greatest potential for academic success in college.
Duval County Public Schools’ Winners
Whitney N. Anderson, Stanton College Preparatory School
Sarah N. Grant, Stanton College Preparatory School
Nana Yaa A. Nima, Paxon School for Advanced Studies
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