CHARLOTTE — Fourteen members of the junior class at Charlotte Catholic High School will receive recognition this fall in the 2018 National Merit Scholarship Program.
The 14 juniors are Jacob Daniel, Austin Franks, Sarah Gilles, Ariel Hobbs, Charles Nenichka, Mary Polking, John Powell, John Roselli, Connor Ruff, Lauren Schmidt, Nicholas Scibelli, Andrew Shooman, Matthew Weber, and David Williams.
Each year, more than 1.5 million students take the Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test (PSAT).
Nationwide, the 50,000 highest-scoring students are recognized as showing outstanding academic potential. From the 50,000 high-scorers, approximately 16,000 will be named National Merit Program Semifinalists, who then will have an opportunity to continue in a competition for approximately 7,400 Merit Scholarship awards.
— Carolyn Kramer Tillman
CHARLOTTE — The head coach of Charlotte Catholic High School’s Debate and Speech Team has received national and state recognition for her efforts and dedication. Mary A. Morales recently was awarded the Diamond Coach Award, her first, by the National Speech and Debate Association. She also was named the Carolina West District Coach of the Year.
Coaches earn distinction in the NSDA through team participation, student achievement, public service and leadership work.
To earn a Diamond Award, a coach must be a member of the NSDA for at least five years. Coaches earn additional Diamond levels based upon the points they receive in the Honor Society. A coach who attains 1,500 points is awarded a first Diamond Award. Coaches with 3,000 points are awarded a second Diamond Award, and so on.
Winning coaches will be recognized at the world’s largest academic competition, the National Speech and Debate Tournament, which will be held this June in Birmingham, Alabama. More than 7,000 students, coaches, and parents from across the country attend the National Tournament each year.
The National Speech and Debate Association is the largest interscholastic speech and debate organization, serving middle school, high school and collegiate students in the United States for the past 90 years.
It provides competitive speech and debate activities, high-quality resources, comprehensive training, scholarship opportunities and advanced recognition to more than 150,000 students and coaches every year.
— Carolyn Kramer Tillman