2025 National Merit Semifinalists from Los Alamos High School, back row from left, Linnhtet Htoon, Kieran Gattiker, Zane Pedersen and Henry O’Neil, Front row, Xiaran Chen and Zoe Bent. Courtesy/LAPS

LAPS News:

Six Los Alamos High School seniors have been named semifinalists in the 70th annual National Merit Scholarship Program. This year’s semifinalists are Zoe Bent, Xiaran Chen, Kieran Gattiker, Linnhtet Htoon, Henry O’Neil and Zane Pedersen. They are among 98 students representing schools across New Mexico, and more than 16,000 Semifinalists overall.

National Merit Semifinalists and their parents were honored at a luncheon on Thursday. “Congratulations to our LAHS National Merit scholarship semifinalists,” said LAHS Principal Renee Dunwoody.  “We are very proud of you and your academic success and know that you have worked hard to get where you are today.”

Test (PSAT/NMSQT®), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of Semifinalists, representing less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the highest-scoring entrants in each state. The number of Semifinalists in a state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the national total of graduating seniors.

National Merit Scholarship winners of 2025 will be announced in four nationwide news releases beginning in April and concluding in July. These scholarship recipients will join more than 382,000 other distinguished young people who have earned the Merit Scholar title.