PULASKI COUNTY, Ark. -- Two students from Pulaski County Special School District have advanced to Finalist standing in the 2026 National Merit Scholarship Program. Katie Griffin and Addison Thomas, both seniors at Sylvan Hills High School, have earned this prestigious distinction and will now advance to consideration for National Merit Scholarships.
2024 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of Finalists represents less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, NMSC says.
141 students from Arkansas were among the 16,000 Semifinalists. Approximately 15,000 students advance to Finalist standing each year. To earn this distinction, Griffin and Thomas submitted a comprehensive scholarship application highlighting their academic achievements, leadership, community involvement, extracurricular activities, and honors. Their SAT or ACT scores also confirmed their earlier performance on the qualifying test, meeting NMSC’s rigorous requirements.
As Finalists, they will now move forward in competition for National Merit Scholarships to be awarded this spring. Each year, roughly 7,000 students nationwide are selected to receive National Merit Scholarships from NMSC, corporate sponsors, or participating colleges and universities.
National Merit Scholarship winners of 2026 will be announced beginning in April.