3 Baylor Seniors Named 2021 National Merit Semifinalists

  • Thursday, September 10, 2020
National Merit Semifinalists, from left, Creighton Arrington, Alyssa Kim and Sophie Peirano
National Merit Semifinalists, from left, Creighton Arrington, Alyssa Kim and Sophie Peirano

The National Merit Scholarship Corporation has announced that Baylor seniors Creighton Arrington, Alyssa Kim, and Sophie Peirano are semifinalists in the 66th annual National Merit Scholarship Program.

These talented seniors are among approximately 16,000 high school students who have an opportunity to continue in the competition for some 7,600 National Merit Scholarships worth more than $30 million that will be offered next spring. Two Baylor boarding students, Matthew An and Dake Peng, and one former Baylor boarder, Erica Wu, qualified as semifinalists but, as international students, are not eligible for the scholarship competition.

Over 1.5 million juniors in about 21,000 high schools entered the 2021 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2019 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. From the approximately 16,000 Semifinalists, about 15,000 are expected to advance to the Finalist level, and in February they will be notified of this designation. All National Merit Scholarship winners will be selected from this group of finalists. Merit Scholar designees are selected on the basis of their skills, accomplishments, and potential for success in rigorous college studies, without regard to gender, race, ethnic origin, or religious preference.

Forty-seven Baylor seniors have qualified as NMSC semifinalists in the last 10 years.


Student Scene
Local Students Receive College Honors
  • 7/3/2025

The 176th Commencement Exercises of Rhodes College took place on campus May 17. The college awarded more than 500 degrees, including the Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, Master of Science ... more

Marion County Teacher Advances In 2025-26 Tennessee Teacher Of The Year Finalists
  • 7/2/2025

Today, the Tennessee Department of Education announced Ashley Mosley of Jasper Elementary School in Marion County as one of the nine finalists for the 2025-26 Tennessee Teacher of the Year award. ... more

UTC And City Of Chattanooga Formalize Strategic Research Partnership
  • 7/2/2025

The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and the City of Chattanooga have entered into a new strategic research partnership formalized through an interlocal agreement approved by the Chattanooga ... more