Five National Merit Finalists for 2022-2023 School Year
Dreher is Proud of Five Blue Devils named as National Merit Finalists by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation
Some 15,000 of the high scorers on the PSAT/NMSQT given in spring, 2022, representing less than one percent of the nation’s high school graduating seniors, qualify as Finalists. They have an opportunity to advance in the competition for some 7,500 Merit Scholarship® awards which are announced later in the spring.
Dreher is pleased to have five students qualifying as Finalists:
Jacob Merrill, son of Susan Merrill and Mark Merrill
Bryce Outten, son of Caryn Outten and F. Wayne Outten
Philip Sophocleous, son of Maria Sophocleous and John Clements
William Varner, son of Margaret Varner and Kevin Varner
Audrey White, daughter of Alicia Wilson and Scott White
Senior Patton Courie has qualified as a National Commended Scholar based upon the PSAT/NMSQT he took in October of 2021. Commended students meet the national minimum qualifying score. Out of 50,000 recognized students, around 34,000 fall into this category. For the 2022 scholarship cycle, the national minimum qualifying score was 207.
Patton is the son of Anna Courie and Albert Courie.
Three Students Selected for Project SEARCH
Congrats to seniors (l to r) Sean Ruff, Ty'tianna Miller, and Robert "Bobby" Day for being selected for Project SEARCH. They will be trained for jobs in the hotel industry, often at Embassy Suites or at another placement of choice. They went through an interview process and skills task analysis.
Savannah Bannister Selected for Victory WORKS Program
Celeste Smith, Special Education teacher, reports with pride that Savannah Bannister has been accepted to Victory WORKS, a program operating the Heyward Store at Heyward Career Center. At the end of her training, Savannah will be placed in a customer service job at Walgreens, Starbucks, etc., or a Richland One site.
Zachary Franks Hopkins and Katherine Tam have won scholarships from the Columbia Rotary Club. Zachary and Katherine excelled at a rigorous application process which included an essay, letters of recommendation, and an in-person interview. Each will receive $20,000 in scholarship money to help fund their college educations.
Zachary and Katherine will be honored at a Rotary Club celebration at Seawell's in May. Kevin Kirkley, our Director of Counseling, will introduce these two students. Chorus teacher Hannah McKenzie (named by Zachary) and retired AP US History teacher Pamela Rose (named by Katherine) will be recognized as "Teachers Who Made a Difference."
Lindsey Steele wins Teaching Fellowship at College of Charleston
Congratulations to senior Lindsey Steele, a Teacher Cadet in Michelle Powell's Dual Enrollment Class.
Lindsey has received a Teaching Fellowship at College of Charleston. Teaching Fellows receive up to $24000 ($6000 a year for four years), advanced enrichment programs, and opportunities for professional development and community involvement.
Tyra Helper is Named a QuestBridge College Prep Scholar
Congratulations to junior Tyra Helper. She has been selected as a QuestBridge College Prep Scholar. Among other benefits, Tyra will attend an all-expense paid summer program at Emory (or another top college) and will have a head start on a full scholarship to prestigious colleges in the fall.
Tyra is among the very top students in the junior class. She has been heavily involved in Advanced Placement courses - this year taking AP Chemistry, AP Research, and AP English Language - and in Project Lead the Way Engineering courses.
Juan Cortes-Hernandez and Susan Nguyen Receive QuestBridge Scholarships
Congratulations to Dreher seniors Truc (Susan) Nguyen and Juan Cortes-Hernandez on being awarded QuestBridge scholarships. The QuestBridge program matches students with select colleges and then, in conjunction with their matched college, covers the cost of tuition, room and board, books, and travel with no loans or parental contributions required.
To be considered for the QuestBridge match, a student must be outstanding academically despite facing financial challenges. Both Susan and Juan are well in the top ten percent of the Class of 2023, and both have GPAs in excess of 5.0.
Susan will be attending Tufts University in Boston and Juan will be attending College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts.
Susan is the daughter of Quynh Nguyen and Juan is the son of Maria Hernandez.
Click on Susan's image to enjoy the interview with CTE Student of the Year, Truc (Susan) Nguyen.
Benjamin Brown Wins Scholarship and Trip to Disney Dreamers Academy
Congratulations to junior Benjamin Brown on being awarded the 2023 MLK Dream Keeper Scholarship. This recognition came during the 35th annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration in Columbia. Benjamin is shown here with Superintendent Witherspoon (left) and Alex English (right).
Equally as exciting for Benjamin, he has been selected to participate in the 2023 Disney Dreamers Academy – one of only 100 teens across the country to be selected and the only South Carolinian. Way to go Benjamin!
