Two Seekonk High School Seniors Recognized by National Merit Scholarship Program

Seekonk — Superintendent Rich Drolet and Principal William Whalen are pleased to announce that two Seekonk High School seniors have been recognized by the National Merit Scholarship Program.

The National Merit Scholarship Program is an academic competition that recognizes students for their outstanding performance on the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT).

"We are thrilled that two of our seniors here at Seekonk High School have been recognized by the National Merit Scholarship Program for all of their hard work and academic achievement on the PSAT," said Principal Whalen. "Recognition from the National Merit Scholarship Program is no small feat, and I congratulate Thomas and Nicholas on their impressive accomplishment."

The National Merit Scholarship Program recognized one Seekonk senior as a Finalist and one senior as a Commended Student:

Thomas Wang

Senior Thomas Wang is among 15,000 students in the U.S. who qualified as a 2022 National Merit Scholarship Program finalist.

As a finalist, Wang's academic record, PSAT/NMSQT Selection Index score, written recommendations, information about his extra-curricular activities and leadership, and essay will be taken into consideration to determine if he will receive a Merit Scholarship award. Approximately 7,500 Finalists will be selected to receive a National Merit Scholarship and earn the Merit Scholar title.

Wang is heavily involved in the Seekonk High School community and participates in numerous extra-curricular activities. He is a member of the soccer team, is the acting captain of the math team, Science Bowl captain and the vice president of Seekonk High's Model UN team. He also plays the piano and saxophone and enjoys watching Jeopardy with his sister.

Upon graduation, Wang will go on to attend Brown University.

Nicholas Yang

Senior Nicholas Yang has been named a Commended Student by the National Merit Scholarship Program.

As part of this acknowledgment, Yang received a letter of commendation from the National Merit Scholarship Corporation in recognition of his outstanding academic performance on the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship qualifying test.

Around 34,000 Commended Students throughout the nation have been recognized this year. Commended Students placed among the top 50,000 scorers of the more than 1.5 million students who took the 2020 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT).

Yang currently serves as the president of the high school’s Key Club and actively participates in numerous volunteer activities throughout the school year. He is also the captain of the swim team, plays the trombone in the band, and is a member of the Model UN and Math League. He hopes to major in Computer Science and Biology in college.
Additional information about the program and available scholarships can be found here.


About National Merit Scholarship Corporation
Since its founding, NMSC has recognized over 3.3 million students and provided some 449,000 scholarships worth over $1.8 billion. The honors awarded by NMSC to exceptionally able students are viewed as definitive marks of excellence. Recipients of Merit Scholarship® awards, Achievement Scholarship® awards, and corporate-sponsored Special Scholarships have increased the nation’s respect for intellectual accomplishments and have contributed significantly to its talent pool of future leaders.