Eight LFHS Seniors Named National Hispanic Scholars

Eight Los Fresnos High School seniors have been named 2015-16 National Hispanic Recognition Scholars by The College Board.

The eight are among about 5,000 of the highest-scoring students from more than 250,000 Hispanic/Latino juniors who take the PSAT/NMSQT.

The College Board’s National Hispanic Recognition Program (NHRP) identifies academically outstanding Hispanic/Latino high school students.

Named were Tristen Cruz, Lucero Dorantes, Miranda Gonzales, Joselynne Macias, Natalie Macias, Kelsi McDonough, Jocelyn Sosa Ramirez and Roque Villafranca Jr.

“In the career of a principal, sometimes you get one or two a year, or even none, but this year we have eight,” said Ronnie Rodriguez, LFHS principal. “That’s incredible for a high school of our size and a community our size.

The eight students scored in the top 2.5 percent among Hispanic/Latino students taking the PSAT in the region.

“All of these students are highly involved in our campus, our community, and they keep up their grades and they do well in our assessments. It’s an honor for them and our school.”

To be eligible, students must take the PSAT/NMSQT in October of their junior year in high school, be of at least one-quarter Hispanic/Latino descent, achieve the minimum required PSAT/NMSQT cutoff score, and achieve a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or higher by the end of junior year.

A National Hispanic Scholars recognition traditionally increases the possibility of additional scholarships for students receiving the honor.