Avon Lake National Merit Finalists

Jack Fink, Mary Bigenho and Dylan Missal

The National Merit Scholarship Program is a not-for-profit organization that awards scholarships to high school seniors annually. In September 2023, about 16,000 students out of nearly 1.3 million who entered the 2024 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the PSAT/NMSQT, were named as semifinalists. The nationwide pool of finalists — representing less than 1% of U.S. high school seniors — includes the highest-scoring entrants in each state. These academically talented high school seniors have an opportunity to continue in the competition for some 7,140 National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $28 million that will be offered later this spring.

For more information on the National Merit Scholarship Program, go to nationalmerit.org.

Avon Lake High School National Merit Scholarship finalists:

Mary Bigenho, 17 – High school activities: Diversity Club (president), M.I.N.D. Club (president), Book Club (president), IMMIX, National Honor Society, National English Honor Society, Math Club, Peer Leaders. Debate Club • Hobbies: Reading, singing, playing with her dog, spending time with her nephews and niece • Colleges of interest: Wellesley College, Davidson College, The College of William & Mary, Queens University, Vanderbilt University, Yale University • Possible major(s): Sociology, Political Science, Humanities, History • Parents: Alison Smith (mother)

Jack Fink, 17 – High school activities: Robotics, Math Team • Hobbies: Skiing, robotics, programming, video games • Colleges of interest: University of Michigan, Carnegie Mellon University, Case Western Reserve University, Cornell University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute • Possible major(s): Computer Science • Parents: Stephen and Tamara Fink

Dylan Missal, 18 – High school activities: Academic Challenge, Math Club, Peer Leaders, National Honor Society • Hobbies: Piano, karate, reading, watching and analyzing sports • Colleges of interest: University of Alabama, University of Richmond, University of Notre Dame • Possible major(s): Math, Physics • Parents: Kevin and Patricia Missal • Dylan also earned a Perfect Score (36) on the ACT last year.