IMSA Names 50 National Merit® Semifinalists
For Immediate Release, September 2003
For comment, contact Brenda Buschbacher at
(630) 907-5033
AURORA—The Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy (IMSA) recently recognized its 50 semifinalists in the 2004 National Merit® Scholarship Program.
The semifinalists represent 28 communities and 37 schools throughout Illinois. Local-area recipients include: (see attached list).
More than 1.3 million seniors in more than 21,000 U.S. high schools entered the year 2004 competition by taking the qualifying exam in 2002 (their junior year). National semifinalists include less than one percent of each state’s seniors.
Semifinalists from throughout the nation will now try to advance to the finalist level of the competition. Approximately 8,000 finalists eventually will receive merit scholarships for college undergraduate study. Merit scholars will be announced in the spring of 2004.
Dr. Stephanie Pace Marshall, IMSA president, noted that credit for the students' achievements should be shared. "Their outstanding performance is a tribute to the students themselves, as well as their families, home schools, and IMSA faculty and staff," she said.
Located in Aurora, Illinois, the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy is an internationally-recognized pioneering educational institution created by the State to develop talent and stimulate excellence in teaching and learning in mathematics, science and the technology. IMSA's advanced residential college preparatory program enrolls 650 academically talented Illinois students in grades 10-12. More than 16,000 teachers and 23,000 students in Illinois and beyond have benefited from IMSA's professional development and enrichment programs. IMSA serves the people of Illinois through innovative instructional programs, public and private partnerships, policy leadership and action research.
IMSA's 50 Semifinalists in the 2004 National Merit® Scholarship Program
| Hometown | Last | First | School | Class of |
| Aurora | Kim | Mimi | Oswego High School | 2004 |
| Belleville | Hill | Shayne | Althoff Catholic High School | 2004 |
| Brookfield | Jacobson | Gabriel | Homeschooled | 2004 |
| Chicago | Cheng | Sarah | Northside College Prep | 2004 |
| Chicago | Jablonsky | Amanda | Lenart Elem Regional Gifted Ct | 2004 |
| Chicago | Peterson | Ann | Northside College Prep | 2004 |
| Chicago | Pratt | Kristen | Lenart Elem Regional Gifted Ct | 2004 |
| Chicago | Qin | Angel | Young Magnet High School | *2003 |
| Chicago | Srikanth | Priya | University Of Chicago Lab Schs | 2004 |
| Chicago | Walsh | Madeleine | Whitney Young High School | 2004 |
| Darien | Lu | Huaxing | Lakeview Jr High School | 2004 |
| DeKalb | Ma | Alex | Dekalb High School | 2004 |
| Downers Grove | Chen | Zheyan (Jenny) | Thomas Jefferson Jr High School | *2003 |
| Elgin | Li | Amy | Elgin High School | 2004 |
| Elgin | Peterson | Amy | Kimball Middle School | 2004 |
| Geneva | Bock | Kevin | Geneva Community High School | 2004 |
| Glen Ellyn | Haines | Heather | Glenbard West High School | 2004 |
| Glenview | Chang | Jeffrey | Maine East High School | 2004 |
| La Harpe | Harden | Jonathan | La Harpe High School | 2004 |
| Libertyville | Xue | Bai (Anita) | Libertyville High School | 2004 |
| Lisle | Ko | Annie | Kennedy Junior High School | 2004 |
| Lisle | Weinberg | Stacy | Lisle High School | 2004 |
| Lisle | Yang | Dunping | Naperville North High School | 2004 |
| Metamora | Driscoll | David | Germantown Hills Middle School | 2004 |
| Morton Grove | Rahlin | Alexandra | Niles North High School | 2004 |
| Mt. Vernon | Smith | Samuel | Mount Vernon High School | 2004 |
| Mundelein | Yang | Kris | Vernon Hills High School | 2004 |
| Naperville | Benario | Steven | Naperville North High School | 2004 |
| Naperville | Chen | Peter | Naperville Central High School | 2004 |
| Naperville | Hislop | Richard | Naperville Central High School | 2004 |
| Naperville | Iyer | Sravisht | Kennedy Junior High School | *2003 |
| Naperville | Rooney | Matthew | Naperville North High School | 2004 |
| Naperville | Shah | Ami | Naperville Central High School | 2004 |
| Naperville | Wang | Peter | Naperville North High School | 2004 |
| Naperville | Wang | Tianyi (Tim) | Naperville North High School | 2004 |
| Naperville | Wu | Karen | Naperville North High School | 2004 |
| Naperville | Xu | David | Naperville Central High School | 2004 |
| Naperville | Xu | Xiaoke(Bobby) | Naperville Central High School | 2004 |
| Naperville | Xu | Yinan (Nancy) | Naperville North High School | 2004 |
| Naperville | Yuan | Rick | Thayer J Hill Middle School | *2003 |
| Oak Park | Shepard | Colton | Homeschooled | 2004 |
| Palatine | Gress | Brandon | Plum Grove Jr High School | 2004 |
| Palos Heights | Waterlander | Jonathan | Chicago Christian High | 2004 |
| Park Forest | Verma | Seema | Cretemonee High School | 2004 |
| Peoria | Pai | David | Dunlap High School | 2004 |
| Peoria | Wang | Shuhao | Washington Gifted School | 2004 |
| Port Byron | Knowlton | Christopher | Riverdale Middle School | *2003 |
| Rockford | Chen | Si | Keith Country Day School | 2004 |
| Wheaton | Rec | Agnes | Wheatonwarrenville High School | 2004 |
| Wheeling | Fu | Alexander | Wheeling High School | 2004 |