Cibola's Abdella among National Merit Scholarship semifinalists
Cibola High School senior Mohamed Abdella was named a semifinalist in the 2019 National Merit Scholarship Corporation competition. He is one of more than 16,000 semifinalists in the 64th annual National Merit Scholarship Program.
“I am honored to receive the opportunity to compete for this scholarship, and I’m especially grateful towards the Cibola Administration and staff that made it all possible for me,” Abdella said. “Receiving the Merit Scholar title and being recognized on a national level would confirm that both their, and my, hard work has paid off.”
Abdella is actively involved in numerous activities on Cibola’s campus, including Academic Decathlon, INTERACT Club, National Honors Society, Gifted and Talented Education, and track and field and tennis. He is ranked No. 1 in the senior class in terms of grade point average and has enrolled in five postsecondary education courses while still in high school. One of his future goals is to earn a degree in the medical field.
According to the website, these academically talented high school seniors have an opportunity to continue in the competition for some 7,500 National Merit Scholarships worth more than $31 million that will be offered next spring. To be considered for a Merit Scholarship award, semifinalists must fulfill several requirements to advance to the finalist level of the competition. More than 90 percent of the semifinalists are expected to attain finalist standing, and about half of the finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship, earning the Merit Scholar title.
NMSC, a not-for-profit organization that operates without government assistance, was established in 1955 specifically to conduct the annual National Merit Scholarship Program. Scholarships are underwritten by NMSC with its own funds and by approximately 410 business organizations and higher education institutions that share NMSC’s goals of honoring the nation’s scholastic champions and encouraging the pursuit of academic excellence.