Country Day Scholars Recognized

Twelve seniors at Fort Worth Country Day (FWCD) have been recognized by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation, including three National Merit Semifinalists and nine National Merit Commended Students. In addition, 17 FWCD juniors and seniors have been honored by College Board National Recognition Programs.

National Merit Semifinalists at Fort Worth Country Day are Joaquin Castro-Balbi, Izzy Gutierrez, and Michelle Pham. These students scored in the top 1% of students across the nation who took the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) and are among 14 students from Fort Worth, 1,339 from the state of Texas, and 16,000 across the U.S. who were named National Merit Semifinalists by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. These students now have the opportunity to advance to the Finalist level of the competition and compete for $30 million worth of Merit Scholarships.

National Merit Commended Students at Fort Worth Country Day are Gracie Cross, Gage Fowlkes, Liz Hazelton, Xixi Hillman, Kendall Lehman, Nick Pakis, Sebastian Salazar, Vie Walker, and Gavin Zoota. These students scored among the top 5% of students across the nation who took the PSAT/NMSQT and are among 34,000 students across the U.S. who were recognized for exceptional academic promise.

In addition to FWCD’s 12 National Merit seniors, 17 FWCD juniors and seniors have been honored by the College Board National Recognition Program. These include:

National African American Recognition Program Scholars — Masai Collins, Sydney Cyprian, and Alexis Rollings

National Hispanic Recognition Program Scholars — Liam Callahan, Joaquin Castro-Balbi, Eliana Garcia, Izzy Gutierrez, Liz Hazelton, Sydney Hudecek, Aramis Moreno, Charlie Ozaeta, Josh Ozaeta, Nick Pakis, Sam Rios, Sebastian Salazar, and Gavin Zoota

National Indigenous Recognition Program Scholars — Jayne Dodson, Charlie Ozaeta, and Josh Ozaeta

The College Board National Recognition Programs annually honor 32,000 underrepresented students across the U.S. who excel on the PSAT/NMSQT/PSAT10 or earn a score of 3 or higher on two or more AP Exams; maintain a 3.5 or higher GPA; and identify as African American or Black, Hispanic American or Latinx, Indigenous, and/or attend school in a rural area or small town.

“Having 23 students recognized by the nation’s top academic scholarship programs is one of the greatest testaments to our exceptional faculty, the Bass Upper School’s academic rigor, and the advanced level of course work offered to FWCD students,” said Eric Lombardi, head of school at Fort Worth Country Day. “As a result, they are well-prepared for college and beyond.”