HISD Honors Top Students at National Academic Achievement Awards
Superintendent of Schools Abelardo Saavedra and HISD Board of Education members recognized 82 high-profile HISD students during the National Academic Achievement Awards reception on April 21 at the Crowne Plaza River Oaks.
The students honored were finalists in the National Achievement Scholarship, National Hispanic Recognition, and National Merit Scholarship programs, which select students on the basis of performance on the Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT), participation in community activities, and application essays.
“All of these students are outstanding products of HISD’s drive to create a college-bound culture and prepare students to be successful in their careers and in their lives,” said Dr. Saavedra. “HISD is not about meeting minimum standards. It’s about excellence, and these students have achieved it.”
The National Achievement Scholarship Program was created in 1964 to assist outstanding African-American students. The National Hispanic Recognition Program, established in 1994, identifies academically outstanding students of Hispanic descent. National Merit Scholarship Program finalists are selected from students who score the highest in each state on the PSAT/NMSQT.
The students recognized in 2009 were:
Bellaire High School
National Merit Scholarship
- Tanvir Ahmed
- Luisa Barron
- Katherine Bleakley
- Patrick Breen
- Arnav Chhabra
- Andrew Garbarino
- Maya Gascoyne
- Anna Godwin
- Ruobing He
- Zachary Herrera
- Jessica Hester
- Sarah Hornbostel
- Ruiji Jiang
- Jing Jin
- Kelsey Johnson
- Allison Khoo
- Anna Li
- Kenneth Loonam
- Anna Meriano
- Claire Morice
- Rebecca Nock
- Duncan O'Connor
- Charles Orchard
- Janice Pan
- Kevin Shen
- William Spencer
- Michael Wong
- Elizabeth Wright
- Young Xu
Carnegie Vanguard High School
National Merit Scholarship
- Suzanne Arrington
- Sanders Butler
- Andrew DeRosa
National Hispanic Recognition
- Suzanne Arrington
- Carmen Sullivan
Challenge Early College
National Merit Scholarship
- Jacob Breier
DeBakey High School for Health Professions
National Hispanic Recognition
- Luis Alvarado
- Amalia Gonzalez
- Monica Martinez
- Yesenia Nava
- Adriana Padilla
- Andres Valderrama
National Achievement Scholarship
- Alexandria Igwe
- Praise Iyiewuare
- Ariel Smith
- Jeremiah Umoh
High School for the Performing and Visual Arts
National Merit Scholarship
- Amy Cousins
- Maricor Lisk
- Rebecca Thompson
- Julia Zimmerman
Lamar High School
National Merit Scholarship
- Victoria Edrington
- Sarah Hartzell
- Michael Miller
- Blake Niccum
- Donald Ross
- Desmond Schipper
- Rebecca Searle
- Kendra Williamson
National Hispanic Recognition
- Sandra Castro
- Luis De Las Cuevas
- Ezekiel Deleon
- Kate Ferguson
- Luis Gallegos
- Gabriella Hulet
- Emerald Lagow
- Samantha Olafson
- Emily Sullivan
- Yahaira Verdejo
- Jonelle Walker
- Clarisa Willhelm-Romero
National Achievement Scholarship
- Danielle Spencer
Washington High School
National Hispanic Recognition
- Gregory Cutaia
Westside High School
National Merit Scholarship
- Randall Schlaudt
National Hispanic Recognition
- Mark Arroyo
- Erika Cruz
- Pablo Hernandez
- Brittany Long
- Libia Vasquez
