National Merit Scholars Ceremony & Breakfast - Palm Beach Campus

In a small, intimate, ceremony with guidance counselors and family members in attendance, we celebrated the incredible accomplishments of our Class of 2022 National Merit Semifinalists, Commended, African American, and Hispanic recognized scholars.

The ceremony started with a breakfast for parents and students, welcome messages from Dr. Douglas Laurie, President of American Heritage Schools, Mrs. Wood, Vice-President of American Heritage Schools, and Mr. Robert Stone, Headmaster of American Heritage Schools, Palm Beach Campus, certificates for each student, and group photos.  

American Heritage Schools, Palm Beach Campus, is #2 in National Merit Scholars Semifinalists out of all schools in Florida and #5 private school in the nation for the highest number of National Merit Scholars Semifinalists.

Each year, over 1.5 million high school juniors in the United States enter the National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT). Of the top 50,000 students, 34,000 are recognized as Commended Students, and 16,000 are recognized as Semifinalists. 15,000 of those are eventually named Finalists based on SAT/ACT scores. From the pool of Finalists, 8,200 will be awarded scholarships. That is less than 1% of ALL students in the US!

“I am so proud of these students for earning this extremely prestigious award,” said Dr. Douglas Laurie, president of American Heritage Schools. “Not only are they nationally recognized as the top one percent academically, but they are also extremely well-rounded, excelling both in and out of the classroom in fine arts, sports, and community service,” Laurie added.

In addition to the millions of dollars in possible scholarships, these bright students now have new opportunities for college and confidence about their futures. According to the National Merit Scholarship organization, colleges such as Harvard, Stanford, University of Chicago, and Vanderbilt enroll the greatest number of National Merit Scholars.

Congratulations once again to our 50 Nationally Recognized Scholars. We believe in each one of you and we are confident that you will achieve great things in college and in your future endeavors. We can't wait to see what greatness you will accomplish next!