NEWS + NOTES
Saints Earn
National Academic Honors
Seniors Elise LaFleur, Jessica Pickens, and Madelaine Pickens have been recognized as National Merit Semifinalists by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. These three Saints are among the nation’s top 16,000 high scorers, including just 41 in Jefferson Parish. About 1.6 million juniors in 22,000 high schools entered the National Merit Competition by taking the Preliminary SAT/ National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT). The nationwide pool of semifinalists, representing less than one percent of high school seniors, includes the highest-scoring entrants in each state. All National Merit Semifinalists have the opportunity to continue in the competition for some 7,500 National Merit Scholarships, worth about $31 million, that will be offered in the spring. Two St. Martin’s seniors — Natalia Bourg and Anabella Imbornone — received recognition from the College Board’s National Hispanic Recognition Program (NHRP) for their performance among the top 2.5% of Hispanic and Latino PSAT/NMSQT test-takers in the region.
Faculty Member Named
ONE TO WATCH in Education
Lower School Spanish teacher Sara Broussard was named to New Orleans CityBusiness magazine’s “Ones to Watch: Education” list this week. Broussard uses the Comprehensible Input approach to language acquisition to reach language learners through real, compelling classroom communication. With this method, she helps students in kindergarten through 4th grade acquire language naturally, rather than learning it consciously. In addition, last spring Broussard was one of just 487 teachers nationwide to receive a grant from Fund for Teachers, a national nonprofit that awards grants to pre-k through 12th grade teachers for self-designed fellowships.
Every year, the NHRP recognizes about 5,000 of the 250,000 Hispanic/Latino juniors who take the test and achieve the minimum required PSAT/NMSQT Selection Index score. The qualifying score may vary by state, region, and territory each year. In addition, students must earn a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or higher by the middle of their junior year to qualify.
Students Earn Musical Honors
MATHLETES TAKE FIRST PLACE StM took home high honors in the St. Paul’s Math Competition in September. Middle and Upper School students scored top finishes in individual and team competitions; their stellar results included three first place, three second place, and three third place wins. The Saints finished first overall at the competition.
Sixth grader Ella Bozeman was named to the Louisiana American Choral Directors Association All-State Children’s Choir. A panel of judges chose her recording as one of the best from recordings submitted by students across the state. This is the third consecutive year Ella has been selected for the prestigious chorus. Sophomore Clara Conatser was selected to the Louisiana Music Educators Association All-State Orchestra. Clara was one of four students chosen from the New Orleans area in the first round. She competed against 36 students from all across Louisiana in the second round before being selected.
6 | The Bell
