Local national merit semifinalists named
Sep. 15—Some of the highest achieving local high school students are getting some recognition this month, from three St. Joseph campuses.
Claire Phillips, Michael Tang, Patrick Rivas-Giorgi and Remington "Remi" Zoubek are named as the St. Joseph group of four high achieving scholars who qualified as National Merit Semifinalists for the Class of 2024. Students take a qualifying test, usually the PSAT, at the beginning of their junior years and undergo a year of consideration that takes other academic criteria into account.
Phillips, who attends St. Joseph Christian School, had been homeschooled up until her sophomore year, but she considers her school to have had an invaluable impact on her success.
"I'm really grateful actually because, well, I did spend a lot of my time being homeschooled," she said. "When I came to St. Joe Christian, the way that my school family has accepted me, really embraced me, taught me so many new things."
Zoubek, Rivas-Giorgi, Tang and Phillips were announced on Sept. 13 as honorees by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. Nationwide, there about 16,000 semifinalists. Most of these go on to become finalists, based on continued academic performance, and qualify for one of 2,500 national merit scholarships. However, the semifinalist honor on its own confers an elite status among high schoolers, and it is highly valued by selective colleges and universities.
Zoubek, who attends Bishop LeBlond High School, is hopeful that this honor will be a key step in admission to the political science program at the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, Indiana — the first step to law school.
"Through my faith, I really value service, and I think going to the right college will help me connect with where I can most serve, and I think that is through law," Zoubek said.
Unlike most teens, she knows exactly the kind of work she wants to do and how to get there in collegiate education. Upon becoming a lawyer, she said, her aspiration is to join the Innocence Project, advocating on behalf of the wrongfully convicted. Her particular interest is on cases involving capital punishment.
"It's my goal to be able to be an advocate for those who can't speak for themselves," Zoubek said.
Tang and Rivas-Giorgi, who attend Central High School, were not available for interviews on Friday but will be honored by the St. Joseph Board of Education at 5:30 p.m. Monday at the Troester Media Center, 3401 Renick St. There were no semifinalists from Benton and Lafayette high schools this year.
Marcus Clem can be reached at marcus.clem@newspressnow.com. Follow him on Twitter: @NPNowClem
