In the spring, the National Merit Scholarship Corp. announces the names of approximately 16,000 semifinalists in the National Merit Scholarship Program. These academically talented high school seniors have an opportunity to compete for over 7,500 National Merit Scholarships, worth more than $32 million, which will be offered in the spring of 2018.

St. Regis High School senior Anna Sanford will be one of the those names on that list as she scored in the top 1 percent in the nation on her PSAT test. In order to be considered for the Merit Scholarship award, semifinalists must fulfill several requirements to advance to the finalist level of the competition. About 90 percent of the semifinalists are expected to attain finalist standing and win a scholarship, which can range from $1,000 to $2,500.

Sanford said she didn’t think she had done well on the test since her class didn’t have time to prepare for it.

“We found out the day before that we were taking the test, and so I was pleasantly surprised to hear how well I did,” she said.

About 1.6 million juniors in more than 22,000 high schools enter the 2018 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the PSAT test, which serves as an initial screen of program entrants. To become a finalist, the semifinalist and the high school must submit an application and information about their school and community activities, demonstrate leadership abilities, employment and honors received.

Sanford participates in volleyball, basketball, and track. She plays the oboe in band, and is in the school choir. She is also a member of Future Farmers of America (FFA), and vice-president of the local chapter, as well as president of her local Business Professionals of America (BPA) chapter, president of student council and on National Honor Society.

“Academics has always been her first priority and it’s paid off. We’re very proud of her. She’s involved in other school activities, but ever since she started school, high achievements in academics has been her first priority,” said her grandfather Lynn Sanford.

Anna is currently enrolled in several advanced placement courses, which are college-level courses and count toward a college degree. She hopes to have one or two semesters under her belt when she enrolls as a freshman at Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington, where she wants to study business administration.