source = http://www.johnsoncitypress.com/default.asp?SectionID=DETAIL&ID=55253
Merit finalists round out academics with extracurricular activites
By Sam Watson
Press Education Writer
swatson@johnsoncitypress.com
Though Science Hill High School seniors Robyn Schmidt, Todd Smalling and Jessica Verran-Lingard have added "National Merit Finalist" to their resumes, you're just as likely to catch them acting in the school's musical, running long distances or leading the school's dance team as cramming for exams.
They simply aren't pigeonholed as "bookworms," a stereotype Smalling thinks is out of character for Science Hill.
"I guess I do enough outside the academic realm," said Smalling, a nationally ranked cross-country runner who also enjoys being a community volunteer. "I think there's not really a stigma (to being a high achiever) at Science Hill. You kind of find your niche. There are a lot of cool kids challenging themselves by taking AP courses."
Besides, Smalling would find life without extracurricular activities "boring" and ill-suited for his future.
"I think having a lot on your plate prepares you well for college," he said. "Having things to do, particularly with extracurriculars, it prepares you to properly manage time and to be organized. These are things that you're going to need to succeed."
Still, Schmidt, Smalling and Verran-Lingard's academic talents have earned them a rare distinction. Selected via Preliminary ACT and SAT scores, high school transcripts and other criteria, only about 15,000 young people qualify as National Merit Finalists each year, representing less than 1 percent of all U.S. high school students. Reaching finalist status makes a student eligible to compete for thousands of scholarships sponsored by the National Merit Corp., businesses, colleges and universities.
"I'm already into college, so I don't think about in terms of 'Oh yeah, this will look really nice on my college application,' " Schmidt said. "I guess it's nice to have that and to be able to say that about yourself — that you're in the top 1 percent in the country."
A former two-time Johnson City Spelling Bee champion, Schmidt said her parents were more concerned than she was about her preparations for the standardized tests leading up to the National Merit competition, but she did look over some preparatory materials on occasion.
"It's useful to know what kind of questions are going to be asked," she said. "To a certain degree, it's either you know stuff or you don't or you test well or you don't. There are lots of really smart people, smarter than me, who don't do well on standardized tests."
Following her graduation from Science Hill in May, Schmidt will enroll at Duke University, Durham, N.C., to major in English and/or history.
"I want to write novels, and an English/history degree is useful for that sort of thing," she said. "I like to read novels. I really like historical fiction. For one thing, if you're writing about a certain person in history, you don't have to come up with much in the way of a plot, because it's already out there for you."
Both Schmidt and Verran-Lingard were featured players in the Science Hill chorus' annual musical, Barry Manilow's "Copacabana," last fall.
Verran-Lingard also studies tap, ballet, jazz and hip-hop dance, a hobby that led to her role as captain of Science Hill's dance team, but she is fully committed to her studies, challenging herself with advanced placement courses across the curriculum.
"I like to succeed, and I try to keep my grades as high as possible," she said. "That probably went into helping me become National Merit Finalist."
Keeping up with it all can be a challenge.
"It becomes a lot of pressure when you have extracurricular activities," Verran-Lingard said. "Being in school 15 hours a day and then having to go back and study for a calc (calculus) test — that's not very fun."
Unlike Schmidt, both Verran-Lingard and Smalling are still pondering colleges, and having the finalist status on their applications won't hurt their admissions chances.
Her top three choices are Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Emory University in Atlanta and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Verran-Lingard already has been named a Niswonger Scholar, an honor that will pay for most of her education. She has a career in defense or corporate law in mind.
"Why law? I like to argue," Verran-Lingard said. "I did this leadership law conference a couple of years ago, and we got to do a mock trial, and I really, really enjoyed it."
Smalling, who earned a perfect score on the SAT's math section and 780 of 800 possible points on the critical reading section and 720 on the new essay portion, is considering a career in medicine, possibly specializing in radiology or physiology. The latter would fit right into his love of long-distance running, which has some the country's top colleges recruiting him as much for his athletic skills as his grades.
"I'm just trying to combine the best academic and athletic institution and see what works out," he said. "I have to factor in both sides of the equation."
His short list includes Georgetown University, the University of Virginia, North Carolina State University, the University of Colorado at Boulder and the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.
"It will probably come down to where I fit in academically, athletically and socially, and where I can get the most scholarship money," he said. "That won't be the deciding factor. I'm really into where I feel comfortable."
Science Hill often sees finalists, semifinalists and commended students in the National Merit program in its ranks.
"It's exciting, because it reflects well on Science Hill as an institution," Smalling said. "My academic and athletic experience here has been unbelievable, so I think we're all grateful to the teachers and the staff."