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Three Students Named Presidential Scholar Semifinalists

Three St. Louis U. High students were named semifinalists for the 2007 Presidential Scholars Program. Six SLUH seniors were named candidates for the honor earlier this year, but only Micah Manary, Christian Ronzio and Dan Viox moved on to the program’s semifinal round.

Ten seniors, five male and five female, were selected from Missouri as semifinalists. This means that more than half of those recognized as the top males in our state came from SLUH. "The fact that three of the five boys in Missouri are from St. Louis U. High is just tremendous," said Academic Assistant Principal Mark Michalski.

"That's absolutely unheard of," said semifinalist Manary. "I think it means that SLUH really does focus on academics."

"I think it says that we're doing a great job of getting (students) ready for college," said Ronzio. "It says really good things about both the school and the senior class here."

The program is one of the top honors in the nation for high school seniors. Being recognized on such a high level will certainly help Manary, Ronzio and Viox in their futures. "I think it'll definitely help when I'm applying for grad schools or internships," said Ronzio.

To make the jump from candidacy to semifinalists, candidates were asked to submit more academic records, as well as six essays to be further reviewed by the White House Commission on Presidential Scholars. According to Viox, the focus was placed on a student’s abilities outside the classroom, such as service or sports, to determine the semifinalists, whereas those in the candidate round were determined purely on SAT and ACT scores.

"I think it means that rather than just studying, I've also got talent," said Manary. "(All three of us) have some sort of innate gift for learning."

Ronzio said he sees his candidacy as a result of his great education. He accredits his selection as a semifinalist to "a product of my English education here, being able to write well."

"I think it's a nice recognition of all the hard work that I've put in over my four years at SLUH," said Viox. "It's good being recognized at a national level."

The program states its mission as "to recognize and honor some of our Nation's most distinguished graduating high school seniors." 2,700 candidates for the honor were announced in late January. The field was then narrowed to 500 semifinalists from around the country. Although an exact date has not been announced, 141 finalists will be named sometime in mid-May.

The 141 scholars will include at least one male and one female from each state, Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia and U.S. citizens living abroad, as well as 15 to be chosen "at large." This makes a total of 121 academic scholars with an additional 20 to be named as arts scholars based on their achievements in the arts.

All semifinalists were asked to submit a photo and a short autobiography for a compilation about the winners.

Finalists will receive a week-long trip to Washington, D.C., accompanied by a teacher of their choice, to attend a week-long awards ceremony. This trip consists of classes taught by top educators, government officials, authors, scientists, and other distinguished individuals for the scholars to attend. These lectures will focus on youth leadership and leadership in "the new America," according to Manary.

Although the program recognizes top students scholars, there is no monetary scholarship given to winners. A ceremony that will conclude the weekend features the presentation of the Presidential Medal to the scholars. "It means that not only athletes are getting nice things," joked Manary.

Manary said he sees this as an honor for himself, Ronzio and Viox, and he hopes that others will see it as reflective of their character rather than just their academics.

By Matt Bettonville of the Prep News.

Published: April 20, 2007 | Categories: Alumni, Faculty & Staff, Homepage, News Section, Parents, Students
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