41 Walnut Valley Seniors Named National Merit Scholarship Finalists

The Walnut Valley School District announced Monday that 41 seniors in the district have been named 2011 National Merit Scholarship Finalists.

The students first qualified last spring as semifinalists with scores among the highest in the state on the preliminary SAT (PSAT).

According to the National Merit Scholarship Corporation's website, some of the goals of the program are to "identify and honor academically talented U.S. high school students and stimulate increased support for their education."

Over half of the program finalists will win a scholarship, typically for the amount of $2,500.

The following group has advanced as Finalists by completing detailed applications, meeting high academic standards, and other requirements for scholarships:

Walnut High students: Eric Bai, Aimee C. Chang, Tyrone Chang, Shulei S. Chen, Stephanie Chui, Sean Kow, Chih-Ying N. Lee, Bonnie R. Lei, Christopher L. Weng, Julia L. Win and Trish T. Yeh.

Diamond Bar High students: Asad Akbany, Ava Chang, Richard J. Che, Johathan Y. Chen, Joyi Chiang, Luke C. Chiang, Ping-Jung G. Chiang, Jacqueline J. Chow, Michael Z. Deng, Triet M. Do, Kenneth J. Han, Alexander Harvey, Amanda Ho, Gabrielle Ho, Matthew Im, Andrew John, Hanbiehn Kim, Michelle L. Koh, Justin H. Kong, Christopher Lee, Jover Lee, Manan P. Shah, Brandon K. Sim, I-Ju Soun, Liang-Kai Stotler, Ivan K. Teh, Emiley F. Tou, Curtis Y. Wang, Samuel Wang, Dennis Yuan, and Qun A. Zeng.