Three 2023 high school graduates from Kootenai County are Merit Scholarship winners.

North Idaho STEM Charter Academy grad Skyla Taylor and Coeur d'Alene Charter Academy grads Madison Craigie and Lauren Holecek are among 7,140 National Merit Scholars selected from 153 colleges and universities in 42 states and Washington, D.C.

College-sponsored awards provide between $500 and $2,000 annually for up to four years of undergraduate study at the institution financing the scholarship.

Taylor's award was announced June 7 by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. Taylor will study civil engineering at the University of Idaho.

Craigie and Holecek's awards were announced July 10.

Holecek received the news she was a winner in early June.

"I was really excited," she said Tuesday. "I’ve been working for National Merit since I was a freshman. My algebra II teacher started me with SAT prep during COVID."

The National Merit Scholarship Program is a yearly academic competition for recognition and scholarships for undergraduates. Its first scholarships were awarded in 1956. It is open to all U.S. high school students who meet participation requirements. Winners are chosen on the basis of their abilities, skills and accomplishments.

Receiving this prestigious scholarship was extra special for Holecek, who plans to study veterinary medicine at Montana State University.

“I actually got a concussion a month before my PSAT, so I am very pleased I was able to figure it out and still get National Merit,” she said.

Even though Charter Academy was tough, she said she was grateful her school was so supportive as she managed to stay focused on her objectives despite the concussion.

"A head injury didn’t stop me from achieving the goals I’d been working toward my whole high school career," she said.

Craigie also plans to attend Montana State, where she will study architecture. She found out about the scholarship in June, as well.

"I was pretty surprised because they only hand out scholarships to half of the finalists," Craigie said. "I was super excited."

The National Merit process is long and arduous, however Craigie recommends it for students who are serious about their studies.

"It definitely is worth giving it your best shot and trying to do the best on the PSATs," she said.

She said she plans to stay in the Western U.S., but has no particular city in mind for where she will go after college as she pursues her architecture career.

"Wherever it takes me, it takes me,” Craigie said.

This year’s National Merit Scholarship competition began when high school juniors took the 2021 preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test. More than 16,000 semifinalists were announced in September 2022. Semifinalists were the highest-scoring program entrants in each state and represented less than 1% of the nation’s high school seniors.

Each semifinalist had to complete detailed scholarship applications that included essays and descriptions of leadership positions and contributions in school and community activities. Students had to show outstanding academic records and be endorsed and recommended by high school officials. They were also required to take the SAT or ACT and earn scores that confirmed their performance on the initial qualifying tests. Over 15,000 attained finalist standing, and only half of the finalists were chosen to receive National Merit Scholarships.

Info: nationalmerit.org