Eight Archdiocese of Newark Students Named National Merit Semifinalists

Eight high school seniors from the Archdiocese of Newark have been named semifinalists in the 70th annual National Merit Scholarship Program.

Alessandra E. Boncaldo, Julianne J. Dale and Sophia S. Lee from Academy of the Holy Angels in Demarest; Brian Song and Daniel Song from Bergen Catholic High School in Oradell; Thomas McDougall of Don Bosco Preparatory High School in Ramsey; and Gavin R. Gerstenbluth and Gene Oh of St. Peter’s Preparatory High School in Jersey City were selected based on their “exceptional scores” on the PSAT/NMSQT, placing them in the top 1% of more than 1.3 million students high schools throughout the country.

As semifinalists, these students are now in contention for a share of nearly $26 million in scholarships that will be awarded to teens across the U.S. next year. To become finalists, they must have outstanding academic performance, receive approval from a school official, write an essay, and submit SAT or ACT scores to support their PSAT/NMSQT scores. About 95% of semi-finalists are expected to become finalists, with approximately half being named fellows.

Barbara Dolan, Superintendent of Catholic Schools for the Archdiocese of Newark, praised the students for their achievements, saying, “The students’ commitment to their academic pursuits, as well as their leadership and community involvement, reflect the spirit of excellence and service in Catholic schools. We strive to educate our students. We wish these students continued success as they pursue the National Merit Scholarship and prepare for higher education.”

The National Merit Scholarship Corporation will announce scholarship recipients in April who will receive one of three scholarships: a $2,500 National Merit Scholarship, a corporation-sponsored Merit Scholarship, or a college-sponsored Merit Scholarship.

In addition to the eight semifinalists, dozens of students from Catholic schools in the archdiocese were recognized as Distinguished Scholars for scoring in the top 3-4% on the PSAT/NMSQT and received a Letter of Honor from the NMSC in recognition of their academic promise.

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Generative AI was used to create the original version of this story, which was reviewed and edited by NJ Advance Media staff.