IN Fox Chapel Area Winter 2025 | Page 18

27 SENIORS RECOGNIZED IN NATIONAL MERIT SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM

Ten Fox Chapel Area High School seniors were designated as National Merit Semifinalists in the 2026 National Merit Scholarship Program: Michael Costello, Riley Hemingray, Alan Jiang, Eloise Johnson, Ulyana Kubini, Joanna Li, Gavin Lynch, Rodrigo Silva, Yash Tahiliani, and Helen Xu. The Semifinalists represent less than 1 % of the nation’ s high school seniors, and the Commended Students place in the top 5 % for their exceptional academic promise. A Semifinalist must have an outstanding academic record throughout high school, be endorsed and recommended by a high school official, write an essay, and earn SAT or ACT scores that confirm the student’ s earlier performance on the qualifying test. Semifinalists must also participate in school and community activities, demonstrate leadership abilities, and receive other awards and honors.

Seventeen were named Commended Students: Marin Airik, Arman Alborzi, Tobias Conklin, Greta Erdner, Laila Golla, Charles Hahl, Nora Kelley, Steven Li, James Manges, Max Melocchi, August Mierwald, Dayna Mullan, Zehra Ozkaya, Zachary Rubin, Joshua Shah, Joseph Shin, and Ian Wellman.

All of these students were selected based on their Preliminary SAT / National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test( PSAT /

The Fox Chapel Area High School National Merit Semifinalists are, from left to right, Helen Xu, Alan Jiang, Yash Tahiliani, Eloise Johnson, Michael Costello, Gavin Lynch, Ulyana Kubini, Rodrigo Silva, Joanna Li, and Riley Hemingray.

NMSQT) scores. Each year, more than 1.3 million juniors complete the PSAT / NMSQT and are automatically entered in the National Merit Scholarship Program. Approximately 16,000 advance to become Semifinalists, and about 34,000 are named Commended Students.

The Semifinalists now have the opportunity to advance to the Finalist level and compete for approximately 7,000 National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $ 26 million to be offered in the spring of 2026. ox Chapel Area

FOX X CHAPEL AREA SCHOOL NEWS

SCHOOL BOARD REORGANIZES, SETS 2026 MEETINGS

The Fox Chapel Area Board of School Directors held its annual reorganization meeting December 2. President Marybeth Dadd, Vice President Ronald Frank, and Assistant Secretary Vanessa Lynch were all re-elected to their offices.

The board will meet on the following dates in 2026:

• January 12( Combined Agenda Study Session & Regular Business Meeting)

• February 2( Agenda Study Session)

• February 9( Regular Business Meeting)

• March 2( Agenda Study Session)

• March 9( Regular Business Meeting)

• April 7( Combined Agenda Study Session & Regular Business Meeting)( Tuesday)

• May 4( Combined Agenda Study Session & Regular Business Meeting)

• June 1( Agenda Study Session)( Auditorium)

• June 8( Regular Business Meeting)

• August 10( Combined Agenda Study Session & Regular Business Meeting)

• September 14( Combined Agenda Study Session & Regular Business Meeting)

• October 5( Agenda Study Session)

16 FOX CHAPEL AREA

The newly elected members of the Fox Chapel Area School Board were sworn in by Magisterial District Judge Matthew Rudzki, a Fox Chapel Area graduate. From left to right are Dr. Jessica Haselkorn, Amy Cooper, Matthew Rudzki, Ariel Zych, and Adam Goode.

• October 12( Regular Business Meeting)

• November 2( Agenda Study Session)

• November 9( Regular Business Meeting)

• December 7( Reorganization Meeting and Combined Agenda Study Session & Regular Business Meeting)

All meetings are held in the Fox Chapel Area High School large group instruction( LGI) room on Mondays( unless otherwise noted) and begin at 7 p. m. The December 7 reorganization meeting will be followed immediately by the combined agenda study session and regular business meeting.

Treasurer Eric Hamilton, and members Amy Cooper, Katie Findley, Adam Goode, Dr. Jessica Haselkorn, and Ariel Zych are the other members of the Fox Chapel Area School Board.