National Merit Honors Earned By New Hope-Solebury Students

NEW HOPE, PA — Five New Hope-Solebury High School seniors have earned recognition in the prestigious National Merit Scholarship Competition.

Among those recognized, two were distinguished as semi-finalists - Adrian Li and Nathaniel Wiseman. They scored among the top one percent of U.S. high school seniors on the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) and will continue in the competition to earn one of the 7,250 National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $28 million.

Nate Wiseman said he is “proud and honored” that his hard work led to the recognition. He said his New Hope-Solebury teachers have been helpful and supportive and have increased his confidence to take on college courses next year. He has also enjoyed his participation in school clubs and sports teams and intends to continue those activities in college. Nate plans to pursue a mechanical or aerospace engineering degree.

Adrian Li shared that he is “grateful to be able to include this distinguished honor on his college applications.” He intends to study a natural science in college, and ultimately, to pursue a career in healthcare as a physician. Adrian expressed his appreciation for the challenging advanced placement courses and extracurriculars he has undertaken during his high school years. He credits those courses with “helping him to develop his knowledge and skills in a variety of ways.”

Additionally, three New Hope-Solebury students received National Merit commendations - seniors James Connolly, Samuel Hoffman and Ava Marrone. Commended students are recognized for the exceptional academic promise demonstrated by their outstanding performance on the qualifying test used for program entry.

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 400 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.