PULASKI COUNTY, Ark. -- Two students from Pulaski County Special School District have earned the distinction of National Merit Scholarship semifinalists. Katie Griffin and Addison Thomas are both seniors at Sylvan Hills High School. Both have the opportunity to advance toward further honors and coveted scholarships.
“I hope to use this to further my education and help give back to my community,” said Thomas.
“Even though tests are not a measure of intelligence, I do believe this is something everyone can achieve and be proud of,” Griffin added. “Look at us, two Arkansas girls who put ourselves on the map!”
According to the National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC), more than 1.3 million juniors in about 20,000 high schools entered the 2026 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2024 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of Semifinalists represents less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, NMSC says.
The nationwide list includes 16,000 Semifinalists, 141 of whom are from Arkansas. To become a finalist, they and a high school official must submit a detailed scholarship application, detailing outstanding academic record, participation in school and community activities, demonstrated leadership abilities, employment, and honors and awards received. They also must earn an SAT or ACT score that confirm the student’s earlier performance on the qualifying test.
About 95% of the semifinalists are expected to attain finalist standing, and approximately half of the finalists will earn one of 6,930 National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $26 million.
Finalists will be announced in February. National Merit Scholarship winners of 2025 will be announced beginning in April.