Irvington Seniors Advance To National Merit Scholarship​ Finals

IRVINGTON, NY — Irvington High School seniors Henry Demarest and Nicholas Papapanou, who were recognized as semifinalists by the 2021 National Merit Scholarship program, have advanced as finalists in the competition.

They are among the top 15,000 high school students nationwide who were awarded the distinction by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation, a spokesman said.

According to its website, the National Merit Scholarship program honors students who show exceptional academic ability and potential for success in rigorous college studies.

Principal Juliet Gevargis-Mizimakoski said everyone was thrilled that Demarest and Papapanou have advanced to finalist standing in the National Merit Scholarship program.

“We are so proud of them,” she said.

Demarest and Papapanou entered the academic competition as juniors along with more than 1.5 million students by taking the 2019 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test, which served as an initial screen of entrants. They are among a group of elite students — representing less than 1 percent of seniors — to earn some of the highest scores on the qualifying test. About 90 percent of the semifinalists advanced to the next round, and about half of the finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship.

The program will award approximately 7,500 scholarships worth more than $30 million. National Merit Scholarship winners will begin to be announced in March.