78 CCSD students named National Merit Scholarship semifinalists

A total of 78 Clark County School District (CCSD) high school students have been selected as semifinalists in the 2023 National Merit Scholarship Program through the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. They represent less than 1 percent of U.S. high school seniors and qualify to continue in the competition for National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $28 million.

These students were among the highest-scoring participants in Nevada out of more than 1.5 million juniors in more than 21,000 high schools nationwide. Students entered the program by taking the 2021 Preliminary SAT/ National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test, which is the initial screening for program entrants. The nationwide pool of semifinalists includes the highest-scoring entrants in each state.

To become a National Merit finalist, each semifinalist and his or her high school are required to complete a detailed application that provides information about the candidate’s academic record, participation in school and community activities, leadership abilities, employment, and honors and awards received. Merit Scholar designees will be selected on the basis of their skills, accomplishments, and potential for success in rigorous college studies. A semifinalist must have an outstanding academic record, be endorsed and recommended by a high school official, write an essay, and have good SAT scores on the qualifying test. All National Merit Scholarship winners will be selected from this group of Finalists.

“Despite the pandemic-related impacts on academic performance, CCSD students are competing nationally to be recognized for their outstanding contributions and achievements,” said CCSD Superintendent Dr. Jesus F. Jara. “These National Merit Semifinalists make us proud, and I wish our semifinalists continued success in their future endeavors.”

CCSD congratulates the following National Merit semifinalists:

Advanced Technologies Academy

• Calvin J. Cheam

• Jonathan E. Fenton

• Dorothy Hua

• Sovannjet Lim

• Sean C. O-Lee

• Royce Ortega

• Nicholas A. Rodriguez

• Olivia J. Spiller

Arbor View High School

• Parker Henry

Ed W. Clark High School.

• Anna M. Bachvarov

• Nirav Banerji

• Shonn A. Chen

• Thomas A. Chung

• Clara Cin

• Melodie Cin

• John M. Clary

• Jalen C. Deloney

• Sanjana S. Dixit

• Nicole H. Ershaghi

• Tharani Gunaseelan

• Hilal Harb

• Troy W. Harris

• Grace M. Hwang

• Samuel W. Hwang

• Kennedy B. Jamison

• Nevin Jiang

• Ojas G. Kadam

• Jayden J. Kim

• Paul P. Kim

• Jasmine Klinkao

• Rocky L. Klopfenstein

• Edwin Q. Ma

• Gavin R. Martin

• Ethan M. Nguyen

• Armaan C. Parikh

• Hannah K. Pham

• Lynn K. Pham

• Sudipta Rout

• Kaylee H. Tsai

• Tiffany Y. Zhan

• Raymond M. Zhang

• Ruijia Zhang

Coronado High School

• Frank J. Abbeduto

• Shani K. Abeyakoon

• Hannah T. Crowell

• Shayla Y. Dang

• Mason D. Graves

• Elaine Kang

• Spencer J. Kim

• Daniel M. Park

• Jadden Rhaine J. Picardal

• Marie I. Picini

• Brian S. Vott

• Jack K. Wohlwend

Foothill High School

• Isabella R. Cordoba

• Miriam M. Dayton

Green Valley High School

• Sarah E. Chemplavil

• Antonio W. Man

Las Vegas Academy of the Arts

• Emily E. Garb

Liberty High School

• Andrew R. Solow

Moapa Valley High School

• Iain S. McMurray

Northwest Career and Technical Academy

• Dylan T. Dalton

Palo Verde High School

• Wynn M. Nielson

Rancho High School

• Tammy W. Huang

• Brian Phu

• Ethan Zhou

Sierra Vista High School

• Lucas Pinto

Silverado High School

• Cassandra D. Kliewer

Southwest Career and Technical Academy

• Johnnessa M. Barroquillo

Veterans Tribute Career and Technical Academy

• Leah Morris

• Kenny Weng

West Career and Technical Academy

• Ella H. Chang

• Hannah E. Contardi

• Hong Q. Feng

• Levi Landers

• Alen Mandzukic

• Amy Park

• Kate M. Sweiven

To learn more about the Clark County School District, visit ccsd.net.