Saint Viator’s National Merit Semi-Finalist Announced Today

Saint Viator High School is proud to announce that senior Grayson Dossett was named a National Merit Semi-Finalist today by officials with the National Merit Scholarship Corporation.

He is among the academically talented high school seniors who have an opportunity to continue in the competition for some 7,250 National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $28 million that will be offered next spring.

"Grayson's accomplishment is not only cause for celebration for himself, his family, and friends but also the Saint Viator community as a whole,” says Principal Jon Baffico. “His efforts are another prime example of the outstanding and rigorous academic environment that our faculty and staff provide for our students and their families. This recognition is another reason we are all proud to be Lions!" 

As a semifinalist, Grayson is among a pool of semi-finalists who represent less than 1% of high school seniors and are among the highest-scoring entrants in each state.

Beyond his outstanding academics, Grayson is a captain of the golf team and participates in Saint Viator’s STEM program and the Engineering Club. He also has participated in the Viator Voice and played on the baseball team.

Grayson was named a semi-finalist based on his PSAT scores taken in 2021 when he was a sophomore. More than 90% of semi-finalists advance to become a finalist.

To become a finalist, the semi-finalist and a high school official must submit a detailed scholarship application, in which they provide information about the semi-finalist's academic record, participation in school and community activities, demonstrated leadership abilities, employment, and honors and awards received. 

A semi-finalist must have an outstanding academic record throughout high school, be endorsed and recommended by a high school official, write an essay, and earn SAT® or ACT® scores that confirm the student's earlier performance on the qualifying test.

National Merit Scholars are selected from this group, on the basis of their skills, accomplishments, and potential for success in rigorous college studies. National Merit Scholarship winners will begin to be announced in April.