High school students honored

Students at West Milford High School earned academic honors from the College Board National Recognition Programs.

The academic honors for rural area, Black, Indigenous and/or Latino students are an opportunity for students to share their strong academic achievements with colleges and scholarship programs that are seeking to recruit diverse talent.

At West Milford High School, 10 students earned this recognition:

• Logan Acanfrio, National Rural and Small Town Award (NRSTA).

• Carlos Banks, National Hispanic Recognition Award (NHRA).

• Brandon Chi, NHRA.

• Zoe Fuchs, NRSTA.

• Ethan Garcia, NHRA.

• Jose Hernandez, NRSTA.

• Aidan Longacre, NRSTA.

• Bozhena Plotysya, NRSTA.

• Megan Seidner, NHRA and National African American Recognition Award.

• Frank Volpe, NRSTA.

“We’re thrilled to celebrate our students and recognize them for the great work they’ve been doing. We’re proud of their strong academic performance in the classroom and on College Board assessments like the PSAT/NMSQT, PSAT 10 and AP exams,” said Principal Matthew Strianse. “There’s so much that makes our students unique, and receiving this honor reinforces this as an asset for their future.”

The criteria for eligible students include:

• Grade point average of 3.5 or higher.

• PSAT/NMSQT or PSAT 10 assessment scores that are within the top 10 percent of assessment takers in each state for each award program or earned a score of 3 or higher on two or more AP Exams in ninth 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 are invited to apply on BigFuture during their sophomore or junior year and are awarded at the start of the next school year. At the same time, colleges and organizations using College Board’s Student Search Service can connect directly with awardees during the recruitment process.

“It’s becoming increasingly hard for students to be ‘seen’ during the college recruitment process. We’re exceptionally proud of the National Recognition Programs for celebrating students who are at times 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.”