Hillsborough County has an OUTSTANDING 66 semifinalists for the National Merit Scholarship Program. Our district led the Tampa Bay area in the number of National Merit Semifinalists! These academically talented high school seniors have an opportunity to continue in the competition for $30 million dollars in scholarships to be offered next spring.

To be considered for a Merit Scholarship award, Semifinalists must fulfill several requirements to advance to the Finalist level of the competition. More than 90% of the Semifinalists are expected to attain Finalist standing and more than half of the Finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship, earning the Merit Scholar title!

To become a Finalist, the Semifinalist and a high school official must submit a detailed scholarship application, in which they provide information about the Semifinalist’s academic record, participation in school and community activities, demonstrated leadership abilities, employment, and honors received. A Semifinalist must have an outstanding academic record throughout high school, be endorsed and recommended by a high school official, and write an essay.

• Of the 66 HCPS National Merit Semifinalists, a total of 40 were enrolled in our Magnet programs
• A total of 36 International Baccalaureate students are National Merit Semifinalists
• Robinson High School IB tied for the most National Merit Semifinalists with 15 in the Tampa Bay region

Congratulations to our HCPS Semifinalists:

Bloomingdale High

Jude Delikat

Trey S. Hydock

Joseph C. Neidig

Freedom High

Alisha Bhatia

Jack R. Gardner

Hillsborough High

Brian Cai

Sabrina O. Feldman

Joshua T. Ignatius

Ronan K. Saligame

Sanjana A. Srinivasan

King High

Sai P. Geddapu,

Victoria H. He

Dayanita Kumar

Eden Y. Luo

Chibeze Oguejiofor

David Z. Peng

Michael S. Tu

Ziyang Wang

Emma R. Wu

Michael C. Wynne

Allan Zhang

Middleton High

Arielle L. Meloche

Tristan B. Minick

Maalav Pandya

Plant City High

Ankit C. Patel

Plant High

Alexander T. Langner

Jessica R. Larrinaga

Erin R. Moffitt

Shibani G. Rana

Matthew D. van Wert

Robinson High

Garrett F. Beede

Sophia H. Chen

Annika J. Cruz

Trey J. Gould

Shea B. Greenberg

Brennan C. Hinson

Leif B. Holmstrom

Rohan V. Joshi

Katharine E. Kemp

Shota A. Konno

Angelina P. Krinos

Maya D. Razdan

Olivia C. Roberts

Levy A. Truong

John F. Weachter

Sickles High

Luke A. Barrow

Joseph B. Benjamin

Justin A. Greenberg

Maxwell J. Mondo

Steinbrenner High

Robert W. Cooper

Devin C. Deluna

Samuel D. Glickman

Haarika R. Gurivireddygari

James H. Harbour

Advika D. Jayanti

Elizabeth R. Kennedy

Emily P. Rogers

Strawberry Crest High

Joel J. Kallarackal

Ankush Mitra

Srikar Parsi

Ayrton M. Rodriguez

Sagnik Yarlagadda

Wharton High

Andrea M. Molina-Dejesus