BY KAREN BOSSICK

Sun Valley Community School Senior Chaise Crus has received a $2,500 National Merit Scholarship.

Crus is one of about 7,500 National Merit Scholarship winners chosen from 15,000 Finalists. They were chosen according to academic record, participation in school and community activities, their demonstrated leadership abilities, employment, honors and awards.

Crus was among 16,000 Semifinalists. About half of the Finalists win a scholarship.

“Chaise has an incredible academic drive and insatiable curiosity,” said Head of School Ben Pettit. “She has excelled in the classroom, and in so many other areas.”

Pettit said that Crus is an active member of the school’s Outdoor Leadership Academy, the co-captain of the Wood River Varsity Swim Team, and has participated in both the Compassionate Leaders and the Youth Philanthropy Initiative programs. She has also served as a Girls on the Run coach, building confidence in young girls, encouraging kindness and inspiring good decision-making skills.

“She is a remarkable person, and we are thrilled that Chaise has earned this national recognition,” Pettit added.

About 1.3 million juniors took the 2024 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT). The national pool of 16,000 Semifinalists included the highest-scoring entrants in each state. To become a Finalist, a Semifinalist must have had an outstanding academic record throughout high school, earned SAT scores that confirmed the earlier performance on the qualifying test, and demonstrated leadership and participation in school and community activities.

The nationwide pool of Semifinalists, representing less than 1 percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the highest scoring entrants in each state. The number of Semifinalists in a state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the national total of graduating seniors.