Brookfield Central is proud to announce that 10 members of the senior class have earned the distinction of National Merit Semifinalist for the 2021-22 school year.

This year's semifinalists for Brookfield Central are: Jahnavi Hansaria, Benjamin Kim, Eva Kumer, Cynthia Lu, Aashay Mardikar, Kevin Niu, Sarah Rubenstein, Alisha Saeed, Owen Tan, and Lily Tull.

Recognition for this great achievement is based on a student's performance on the PSAT exam taken during their junior year. These students rank among the best in Wisconsin and the United States, with their PSAT exam scores in the top 16,000, representing less than 1% of 1.5 million United States high school seniors according to the National Merit Scholarship Corporation.

National Merit semifinalists have the opportunity to continue in the competition for some 8,700 scholarships worth more than $40 million, which will be announced in the spring. About 15,000 semifinalists are expected to be notified in February that they have advanced to the finalist round, from which the 2,500 winners of $2,500 National Merit Scholarships will be chosen.

Approximately 1,000 corporate-sponsored Merit Scholarship awards will be given to students who meet the corporations’ specific criteria, and about 180 colleges and universities are expected to finance some 4,100 Merit Scholarship awards to finalists who will attend their institutions.

Congratulations to this year's National Merit Semifinalists from Brookfield Central!

(Photo courtesy of Mary Grace Blake)