Students named National Merit Scholarship semifinalists

Several high school seniors have been named semifinalists for the 2027 National Merit Scholarship Program.

Isha Garg, a senior at Rome High School, was selected as one of more than 16,000 semifinalists nationwide. Garg has previously been recognized as an AP Scholar with Distinction and participated in the Governor’s Honors Program.

At Porter-Gaud School, four seniors—Nathan DiLisi, Allison Kulka, Owen Donahue, and Robert Wey—were also named semifinalists.

The National Merit Scholarship Program identifies students with exceptional academic ability based on Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test scores. The semifinalist pool represents less than 1% of U.S. high school seniors. Approximately 15,000 semifinalists are expected to advance to the finalist level, with many competing for scholarships totaling nearly $24 million.