Out of 1.5 million entrants all over the country, senior Hannah Huezo is the only National Merit Semi-Finalist in the district. She’s one of 16,000 high school students to be recognized as a semi-finalist.
Last year, Rider had five semi-finalists, and the other high schools in town also had their share. This year, Huezo has had to deal with the media coverage of her achievement all by herself.
“It’s insane all the attention I’m getting,” Huezo said. “I’ve been in Times Record News, on the news, and the radio. It was exciting at first, but now it’s just getting ridiculous. I don’t know that I enjoy it as much as I thought at first.”
Hannah started her preparations for the PSAT back in the summer of 2009 with summer test prep classes with the Mr. and Mrs. Kramer and Mrs. Neale.
“I learned a lot from the sessions. It helped me so much,” Hannah said. “We learned vocabulary and what type of questions to expect.”
Of all the things she learned, one really stood out. The teachers told her to keep her same morning routine on the day of the test.
“I woke up, took a shower, curled my hair, ate some breakfast,” Hannah said. “I made sure I got there 30 to 45 minutes early.”
With all the practice and the test behind her, all Hannah had to do was wait for her score.
“I made a 216 on the PSAT which is kind of disappointing,” Huezo said. “I only made it (National Merit Scholar) by 1 point.”
Despite her disappointment, she is still a Semi-Finalist. She has a long road ahead of her after high school, but she will receive some scholarships.
“I want to go to Texas A&M and study ocean engineering,” Hannah said. “They are one of the only schools to offer that. When I apply I’ll receive a $34,000 scholarship from them.”
Hannah also has some advice for future scholars too.
“Have confidence,” Huezo said. “Have confidence in yourself.”