National Merit Scholars

A school-record 15 National Merit Semifinalists from the Class of 2026 were recognized Friday (Sept 12) at Convocation by Jesuit principal Mike Scicchitano. It is the most Semifinalists of any Catholic school in Florida.

Also recognized were an additional 13 seniors who received National Merit Commended Student honors. The total of 28 combined Semifinalists and Commended Students is the second-most ever at Jesuit.

National Merit recognition is awarded annually based on the PSAT score, a standardized test administered in October of their junior year. A little more than 17,000 Semifinalists nationwide are honored from the roughly 1.6 million juniors who take the PSAT.

The 2026 National Merit Semifinalists from Jesuit are: Diego Alvarado-Borjas, Henry Bravo, Jesse Cogburn, Jack Fults, Brady Jackson, Preston Jomon, Richard Jones, Traynor Little, Justin Lopez, Sagar Lopez, Charlie Muzi, Henry Nalley, Anthony Odio, Noah Reese, and Garrett Smith.

The 2026 Commended Students from Jesuit are: Austin Blewitt, Robert Bossowski, Mitchell Echevarria, Rocco Falcon, Connor Flynn, Benjamin Gentile, Gavin McMillon, GianLuca Pasquotto, Lukas Ruiz, Richard Scott, John Sumagang, Tobin Swiger, and Grayson Teske.

Scicchitano announced the names of all 28 and congratulated them for their achievement. He acknowledged the dedicated faculty and staff who have helped form them, while explaining the value and meaning of becoming a National Merit Semifinalist and Commended Student.

School president Fr. Vincent Giacabazi, S.J. then received the Semifinalists in front of the student body in the Chapel of the Holy Cross. Afterward, the Semifinalists and Commended Scholars, along with their families, gathered for a reception in the Multi-Purpose Room.

Over the past 8 years, 77 Jesuit students have achieved Semifinalist recognition, and 99 have been named Commended Students, for a total of 176 recognized by National Merit in that span, 22 per year.

The PSAT qualifying standard for students to be recognized as Semifinalists can change annually and varies from state to state. The numbers are often slightly different year-to-year because the National Merit Corporation determines the allocation of Semifinalists based on each state’s percentage of the national total of graduating high school seniors. This year in Florida, the score requirement went up slightly over last year to 219, and a total of 1,008 students statewide from 271 schools earned Semifinalist honors.

The 17,000+ Semifinalists nationwide will continue in the pursuit of 7,590 National Merit Scholarships worth more than $30 million that will be determined in the spring. Semifinalists must fulfill several requirements to advance to the Finalist level of the competition later this school year. About 95% of the Semifinalists attain Finalist standing, and nearly half of the Finalists will receive a National Merit Scholarship and earn the Merit Scholar title. The percentage of Semifinalists from Jesuit achieving the Merit Scholar title over the past decade has been well above 50%.

For much more information about the National Merit Scholarship Program, which dates back to the 1950s, click here. Go to the Facebook page Jesuit High School of Tampa for many more photos.