Community School students Alice Bynum, left, Michelle Bahan, Andrew Durtschi, Delamon Rego, Hunter Smith, Charlie Baser and Reed Boeger qualified as National Merit Semifinalists. The students? accomplishment broke their school?s record.
Andrew Durtschi, a semifinalist and student body president, explains that his peers contributed to his success. Photo by David N. Seelig
The 50th Annual National Merit Scholarship Program has named seven Community School students as National Merit semifinalists. The group of students qualifying for the award comprises the largest number of students in one Community School class in history to earn the semifinalist recognition.
?We have a very intellectual class,? commented Andrew Durtschi, a semifinalist and the school?s student body president.
?We all end up stimulating each other,? Delamon Rego, a fellow semifinalist, added.
The semifinalists include Durtschi, Rego, Michelle Bahan, Charlie Baser, Reed Boeger, Alice Bynum and Hunter Smith. These students represent almost a quarter of the senior class at the private school based in Sun Valley. Nationally, the pool of semifinalists represents only 1 percent of all high school seniors.
The students qualified for the award by taking the 2003 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test during their junior year. In addition to their scores, the semifinalists presented a strong academic record, a recommendation from the principal and SAT scores that confirmed their qualifying test scores, explained Katie Raffetto the school?s admission associate.
With intellectual accomplishments bringing the diverse seven together for lunch, conversation among the group revealed a common denominator?their academic success stems from their well-rounded education and involvement in extracurricular activities.
?I don?t think any of us obsessed over taking it (the test),? Rego said.
Instead, the group focuses on the entirety of their education rather than narrowly concentrating on test taking.
?I think not trying to prepare, is what really prepared us,? Bahan said.
The group also attributed their accomplishments to their non-academic pursuits.
?They keep you sane,? Baser said, referring to her outside endeavors.
Although the students? interests span from skiing to singing, they all agreed the activities improve their academic performance.
?I?ve learned to balance my time,? Boeger, a freestyle skier, said.
?They have made me more organized and more motivated,? Rego a Nordic skier, commented.
The solidarity among the entire senior class also played into the students? success.
Speaking to the class, Jon Maksik, the headmaster of The Community School, said, ?It?s a rare group of kids. They are remarkably supportive of each other ? No one feels excluded.?
The semifinalists compete for 8,000 Merit Scholarships worth $33.9 million. The awards will be given in the spring.
?Their achievement is credit to each other, to their classmates and to the faculty,? Maksik said.
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Community School students Alice Bynum, left, Michelle Bahan, Andrew Durtschi, Delamon Rego, Hunter Smith, Charlie Baser and Reed Boeger qualified as National Merit Semifinalists. The students? accomplishment broke their school?s record.
Andrew Durtschi, a semifinalist and student body president, explains that his peers contributed to his success. Photo by David N. Seelig
