Northside School District students were named semifinalists in the 56th annual National Merit Scholarship Program. The semifinalists will now compete for 8,200 Merit Scholarship awards, worth over $35 million. The nationwide pool of semifinalists includes the highest scoring entrants in each state. About 90 percent of the Semifinalists are expected to attain Finalist standing, and approximately half of the Finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship, earning the Merit Scholar title.