Paris High School Seniors Receive College Board National Recognition Program Awards

Students at Paris High School earned academic honors from the College Board National Recognition Programs. These programs celebrate students’ hard work in high school and showcase their strong academic performance. The educational benefits for rural areas, Black, Indigenous, and Latino students are an opportunity for students to share their solid academic achievements with colleges and scholarship programs seeking to recruit diverse talent.

At Paris High School, eighteen students received the academic honor. Addison Andrew, Alexis Raney-West, Anderson Bunch, Ashton Hilliard, Aubrey Coco, Ava Fitzgerald, Chase Lamb, Curtis Fendley, Jovanny Leon, Luke De la Garza, Madeline Green, Pablo Melguizo, Preston Thompson, Sophie Smallwood, Timothy Cross, all received the National Rural and Small Town Scholar Award; Alexis Raney-West, and Ashton Hilliard also received the National African American Recognition Award along with Dakenzi Robinson. Jovanny Leon, Luke De la Garza, and Pablo Melguizo also received the National Hispanic Recognition Award along with Tomas Farr. Mackenzie Martin received the National Indigenous Award.

The criteria for eligible students include:
•GPA of 3.5 or higher.
•PSAT/NMSQT or PSAT 10 assessment scores are within the top 10% of assessment takers in each state for each award program or earned a score of three or higher on two or more AP Exams in 9th and 10th grade.
•Attend school in a rural area or small town, or identify as African American/Black, Hispanic American/Latino, or Indigenous/Native.

Eligible students should apply to BigFuture during their sophomore or junior year and receive the award at the start of the next school year to share their achievements in high school as they plan for the future. At the same time, colleges and organizations using the College Board’s Student Search ServiceTM can connect directly with awardees during recruitment.

“It’s becoming increasingly hard for students to be ‘seen’ during the college recruitment. We’re exceptionally proud of the National Recognition Programs for celebrating students who are sometimes overlooked but have shown their outstanding academic abilities,” said Tarlin Ray, senior vice president of BigFuture® at College Board. “This is a benefit not only for students but also for colleges and universities committed to recruiting diverse and talented students.”