Ten seniors in the Herricks School District were named National Merit Scholarship semifinalists.
The 2025 National Merit Scholarship semifinalists from Herricks High School are Maya Aboutaleb, Afnan Ali, Shome Chakraborty, Lucy Liu, Diane Ma, Krish Maheshwari, Pratham Patel, Maximilian Peng, Kaitlyn Rams and Vidhi Shah.
These students are joined by an elite group of approximately 16,000 semifinalists who were selected from over 1.3 million juniors in over 21,000 high schools who applied for the 2025 National Merit Scholarship program. Semifinalists represent the top 1 percent of high school seniors and highest-scoring entrants from each state.
“The outstanding achievements of these ten students highlight the dedication to
excellence and the welcoming and affirming learning environments fostered by the
Herricks High School community, including faculty, staff, and families,” Tony Sinanis, Herricks Superintendent of Schools, said. “These students represent every competency
highlighted in our Portrait of a Graduate — they are critical thinkers, creative innovators,
collaborators, and strong communicators who lead with compassion and confidence. Their
success inspires both present and future generations of students, illustrating the
tremendous potential for success within our educational environment.”
The next steps for semifinalists include completing a scholarship application which
will spotlight their academic record, participation in school and community activities,
leadership experience, employment and honors and awards. Scholarship winners will be
announced beginning in April.
