National Merit Scholarship Finalists are some of the most sought-after high school students in America. According to the National Merit Scholarship Corporation, they have the strongest combination of academic skills and achievements, extracurricular accomplishments, and potential for success in rigorous university studies. Scholarship winners represent fewer than 1% of the initial pool of student entrants, which typically includes over 1.6 million participants, making the achievement that much more impressive. This fall, two of this year’s competition winners, Meaghan Pierce and Catherine Thomas, have chosen to attend Christendom, where they will aim to learn the truth, live the faith, and thrive as Catholics.
Pierce and Thomas are the latest National Merit Scholarship Finalists to come to Christendom, joining former winners Joey Piroch, Sam Wright, Anna Milinovich Max Henrie and Mary Clare Young. Christendom awards up to five full-tuition scholarships to National Merit Scholarship Finalists each year, rewarding these top-notch students for their persistence in their academic studies.
In the case of Pierce, she felt a desire to live in a thriving Catholic community for years. Born and raised in Heavelton, New York, she hails from a small town where most of the population is spread out and few are Catholic — particularly in her own age group. For the first time last summer, she got a taste of what a vibrant Catholic community feels like at Christendom’s Best Week Ever high school summer program. After that, her choice for college was obvious to her.
“The community at Christendom that I experienced at the summer program last year felt like a dream come true, and I wanted to continue that experience through college,” she says. “Most of all, I really liked Christendom’s mission — restoring all things in Christ, educating in the intellectual tradition of the Church, and forming the whole person — but even better than that, I loved that everyone at Christendom was actually living out that mission in very practical, real ways.”
Pierce was homeschooled until the ninth grade, when she began attending her local public school. She ended up graduating at the top of her class, adding the title of “valedictorian” onto her resume, right next to “National Merit Finalist.” That latter achievement was hugely exciting for her and helped earn her a National Merit Finalist full-tuition scholarship at Christendom.
Thomas, who is a native of Corpus Christi, Texas, attended Incarnate Word Academy from kindergarten through her high school graduation. She wanted the same level of rigor she experienced at Incarnate Word, along with the thriving Catholic community, in her college education, and found that at Christendom.
“I want to attend Christendom for a faithfully Catholic and academically rigorous education,” says Thomas. “Christendom stands out from other faithfully Catholic schools because of its beautiful location and variety of majors. The critical thinking skills developed in its liberal arts education will help me with anything I do.”
Thomas wants to pursue a mathematics major at Christendom, in addition to a minor in physics. Her National Merit Finalist status unlocked doors for her to attain such a degree at a variety of larger institutions, but she felt that Christendom’s offerings exceeded those of other “big name” colleges.
When she arrives on campus this fall, Thomas will immediately launch into her studies, while also pursuing playing varsity sports at the collegiate level. Eventually, she also wants to study in Rome with Christendom during her junior year, expanding her knowledge base beyond the shores of the United States.
Being named a National Merit Finalist speaks volumes as to one’s academic prowess. Thomas and Pierce can count themselves amongst the elite students in the United States, and now amongst the thriving student body at Christendom College as well. Their desire to learn the truth, live the faith, and thrive as Catholics led them to the school; their National Merit Finalist full-tuition scholarships helped make it even more affordable. Now, they are ready to prepare for their futures beginning this fall, as they aim to accomplish the mission of the college and go out to “restore all things in Christ.”
Find out more about Christendom’s National Merit Finalist Full-Tuition Scholarship here.