September 18, 2023

Two Argyle High School students have earned recognition among the nation’s highest-achieving seniors.

Caroline Deffenbaugh and Noah Cha have been named 2024 National Merit Semifinalists.

These seniors are two of approximately 16,000 Semifinalists in the 69th annual National Merit Scholarship Program. These academically talented students have an opportunity to continue in the competition for 7,140 National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $28 million that will be offered next spring. 

“All of us at Argyle High School are very proud of both Caroline and Noah on this amazing accomplishment,” Argyle High School Principal John King said. “Their long hours of dedication to their academics have paid off in big ways today, and we wish them only the best as they continue down the road toward becoming National Merit Scholars.”

Over 1.3 million high school juniors entered the 2023 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2022 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying 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.

To be considered for a Merit Scholarship award, Semifinalists must fulfill several requirements to advance to the Finalist level of the competition. About 95 percent of the Semifinalists are expected to attain Finalist standing and approximately half of the Finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship, earning the Merit Scholar title.

National Merit Scholarship winners of 2024 will be announced in four nationwide news releases beginning in April and concluding in July.