Naomi David Named Semifinalist for National Merit Scholarship Program

DACULA, Ga. – The National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) revealed the names of over 16,000 semifinalists on Wednesday for the 70th annual National Merit Scholarship Program, with Hebron Christian Academy senior Naomi David earning a spot on the prestigious list.

These academically talented high school seniors have an opportunity to continue in the competition for some 6,870 National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $26 million that will be offered next spring. To be considered for a Merit Scholarship® award, semifinalists must fulfill several requirements to advance to the finalist level of the competition. About 95 percent of the semifinalists are expected to attain finalist standing, and approximately half of the finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship, earning the Merit Scholar® title.

“We are incredibly proud of Naomi David for being named a National Merit semifinalist, and we eagerly await her continued success throughout the process,” said Dr. Matthew Annett, HCA Assistant Head of School and Upper School Principal. “She has diligently applied the intellectual talents God has given her, and we look forward to the great accomplishments ahead.”

High school juniors entered the 2025 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2023 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of semifinalists, representing less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the highest-scoring entrants in each state. The number of semifinalists in a state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the national total of graduating seniors.

Three types of National Merit Scholarships will be offered in the spring of 2025. Every finalist will compete for one of 2,500 National Merit® $2500 Scholarships that will be awarded on a state-representational basis. About 770 corporate-sponsored Merit Scholarship awards will be provided by approximately 130 corporations and business organizations for finalists who meet their specified criteria, such as children of the grantor’s employees or residents of communities where sponsor plants or offices are located. In addition, about 150 colleges and universities are expected to finance some 3,600 college-sponsored Merit Scholarship awards for finalists who will attend the sponsor institution.

National Merit Scholarship winners of 2025 will be announced in four nationwide news releases beginning in April and concluding in July. These scholarship recipients will join nearly 382,000 other distinguished young people who have earned the Merit Scholar title.

NMSC, a not-for-profit organization that operates without government assistance, was  established in 1955 specifically to conduct the annual National Merit Scholarship Program.  Scholarships are underwritten by NMSC with its own funds and by approximately 280 business organizations and higher education institutions that share NMSC’s goals of honoring the nation’s  scholastic champions and encouraging the pursuit of academic excellence.