Charger News

National Merit Scholar

Jonathan McNabb, Charger Staff

Cookeville High School’s Colin Gentry is one of sixteen thousand students around the United States to be named a National Merit Scholarship semifinalist. He will find out in February if he is one of the fifteen thousand finalists eligible for scholarships. This would mean that Colin is eligible for  more than eighty-two hundred award scholarships worth 33.9 million dollars.. He is also eligible to receive a scholarship from any company or college that recognizes National Merit Scholarship finalists.

To be eligible to be considered for a National Merit Scholarship Colin had to take the PSAT during his junior year. More than 1.3 million juniors took this exam to qualify. This August he was informed that he could apply because of his high PSAT scores. When informed of this, he had to send his transcript and a five hundred word personal essay into the National Merit Scholarship headquarters.

Colin received notice of becoming a semifinalist on Aug. 26, also his birthday. Bryan Isbell and Jie Jiang, who also applied for this award, were recognized as comendable students.