Springdale aims for more scholarship honors

SPRINGDALE -- Schools in Springdale are building more National Merit Scholarship finalists in their classrooms.

The National Merit program qualifies students for scholarships and can lead to other honors. Administrators told School Board members Tuesday the test qualifying students for the honor is changing, even as they try to recruit more students.

Springdale School Board

Stephanie McConnell was recognized Tuesday as the next principal of Helen Tyson Middle School. McConnell, the assistant principal, will replace Susan Buchanan, who is retiring. McConnell holds a education specialist degree and master of education from Harding University and a bachelors of science in education from the University of Arkansas.

Source: Staff Report

Billboards went up in Springdale this spring to alert parents to the importance of the PSAT and has helped interest this year, said Marcia Smith, Springdale's coordinator of college and career readiness. Increasing student honors is a big goal for the district, she said in her report to the board.

A PSAT exam for juniors sets the stage for which students will be selected for National Merit honors in their senior year, Smith said.

About 50,000 of the highest test scores from 1.5 million students qualify for an honor through the program, according to the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. There are about 15,000 semifinalist and 7,600 finalists.

The ACT and SAT are college admission tests. The preliminary SAT or PSAT is taken by all sophomores in Springdale. Administrators try to get top scoring students to retake the exam their junior year to qualify for scholarships under the National Merit program.

It's a two-year process from the time students take the test until they are named a National Merit finalist, Smith said. Students who found out at the beginning of this school year they made the semifinalist cut should get word this month if they will make finalist.

Juniors who took the test in October of last year will be finding out this month if they are eligible as either a commended student or a National Merit semifinalist, Smith told the board.

Of the students who took the test in the fall of 2014, 87 made a score above 150. The cutoff point for top scores varies depending on the scores of all the students who took the exam. Administrators are hoping for three National Merit semifinalists to be announced in September. Last fall there were three students who reached the semifinalist cutoff score of 205, Smith said.

This year the SAT will undergo changes that make it more similar to the ACT.

A penalty for incorrect answers will be gone. The essay will be optional. Vocabulary will still be stringent, Smith said, but it will be in context. Not all questions will be multiple choice, but among those that are there will be four options instead of five. The scoring system will be reworked. Top scores will be worth 1600 points.

Teachers had training Monday on the changes and are putting together boot camps for interested students, Smith said. The strongest performing students also tend to be those highly involved in school. Administrators are trying to offer options so students will be prepared for the test, but the recent changes give them a month and a half to prepare students.

Board members also heard an update on construction. Projects are moving along smoothly at the Jarrell Williams Bulldog Stadium. Administrators are in the process of buying a metal building and small parking area east of the high school at 202 N. Virginia St. The property will replace a quonset hut torn down during the remodel and store mowers and other equipment.

NW News on 04/15/2015

Upcoming Events