Top row: Amir Isvandi, James Denning, Paul Sparacello, Andrew Frey, Benjamin Farmer, Cullen Morris
Middle row: Adam Bassam Al-Hariri, Harrison Evans, Ben Evans, Jonathan Brockhoff, Jack Hubbard, Derek Moore, Peyton Bouchon
Bottom row: Darrin Haase, Everett Kramer, James Holmes, Nathan Nguyen

For almost 200 years, Jesuit has formed men motivated by pursuit of God’s greater glory. The academic accomplishments of our students, including the remarkable recognition of 17 National Merit Semifinalists in the Class of 2026, are a testament not only to their hard work but to the commitment of disciplined excellence we strive to cultivate here on Carrollton & Banks. These honors are signs of the deeper formation taking place—an education that transforms each student into a man for others.

These seniors’ outstanding accomplishments come in addition to the six 36s the class has attained so far on the ACT®. Seniors who have scored a 36 include Adam Bassam al Hariri, Benjamin Farmer, Derek Moore, Cullen Morris, Will Berry, and James Denning.

The number of semifinalists in a state for the prestigious National Merit Scholarship Program is proportional to that state’s percentage of the national total of graduating seniors. Nationwide, nearly 1.3 million students entered the competition, and the field was narrowed to only around 16,000 semifinalists. Considering semifinalists alone, this number represents less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors. From the elite group of semifinalists, 7,500 students will go on to win scholarships worth tens of millions of dollars.

Commended Students in the National Merit Competition

Additionally, the names of 12 seniors who are Commended in the National Merit Scholarship competition were also released. According to the NMSC, more than two-thirds (about 34,000) of the approximately 50,000 high scorers on the PSAT/NMSQT^® receive Letters of Commendation in recognition of their outstanding academic promise. Commended Students are named on the basis of a nationally applied Selection Index score that may vary from year to year.

These 12 Jesuit seniors are: William Berry, Finnian Connolly, Connor Fanberg, Grayson Gibbons, Christopher Juge II, Christopher Lawler, Ethan Nguyen, David Paul Rodriguez Prouet, Micah Sens, Sean Timler, Joshua Volpe, and Connor Wilken.

Jesuit’s faculty, administration, and staff of Jesuit High School congratulate the seventeen National Merit Semifinalists, the twelve Commended Students, and the six students who scored a 36 on the ACT®.

Above all, Jesuit relentlessly pursues God’s greater glory. While students’ academic accolades reflect the school’s mission, they are not the mission itself. They instead signify that Blue Jays are becoming the men that they were made to be: men of faith and men for others.

Alongside celebrating students who attain these academic accomplishments, Jesuit also highlights graduating seniors who are named winners of highly selective merit-based national scholarship competitions. Click here to read about more of these students.