Mercy High School Senior Named National Merit Semifinalist

Julia Kelly, a senior at Mercy High School, has been named a semifinalist in the 2011 National Merit Scholarship Program.  Julia is among only one percent of U.S. high school seniors to receive this designation.  These academically talented students have the opportunity to continue in the competition for some 8,400 National Merit Scholarships, worth more than $36 million, that will be offered next spring.

About 1.5 million juniors in 22,000 high schools entered the 2011 National Merit Scholarship program by taking the 2009 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test.  Approximately 15,000 Semifinalists are expected to advance to the Finalist level and from this group all National Merit Scholarship winners will be chosen. In order to become a Finalist, a student must have an outstanding academic record throughout high school, be endorsed and recommended by the high school principal, and earn SAT scores that confirm the student’s performance on the qualifying test.  Merit scholars are selected on the basis of their skills, accomplishments, and potential for success in rigorous college studies.

In announcing Julia’s selection as a National Merit Semifinalist, Sr. Mary A. McCarthy, Principal of Mercy High School, stated: “We are so proud of Julia and congratulate her on this prestigious honor.  She is an outstanding student and a great representative of Mercy’s excellent academic program.”

Julia, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Chris Kelly of South Glastonbury, was also named a Governor’s Scholar in May, one of only thirty students in the state of Connecticut to receive this award.  She is a two-year member of the Catherine McAuley Chapter of the National Honor Society, where she serves as Vice President of Tutoring.  Julia is also an AP scholar, Mercy Ambassador and recipient of the Harvard Book Award, as well as many awards for excellence in her high school studies.