Article contributed by Jonathan W. Gipson, Magazine Schools Media Relations
MAGAZINE – Magazine High School senior Brock Gentry has been named a College Board National Rural and Small Town Recognition Program Scholar.
The College Board National Recognition Programs award academic honors to high-performing, underrepresented students. The five national recognition programs include the National First-Generation Recognition Program, National African American Recognition Program, National Hispanic Recognition Program, National Indigenous Recognition Program and National Rural and Small Town Recognition Program.
Recipients are strong academic performers. Students who take eligible administrations of the PSAT/NMSQT, PSAT 10, or AP Exams and meet the score requirements are considered for awards. Students must also identify as African American/Black, Hispanic/Latino, Indigenous/Native American, first-generation or attend high school in a rural area or small town. Awardees can help colleges find them based on their hard work in high school and can celebrate with their school communities.
The programs are open to sophomores and juniors, and Gentry’s recognition is based on his academic achievements from his junior year (2022-23).
Juniors must meet the following criteria to be considered for any of the National Recognition Programs: 1). Must have a GPA of B+ (equal to at least 3.3 or 87%-89%) or higher at the time they are applying. Weighted and unweighted GPAs are considered; 2). Must have a permanent address in the United States, a U.S. territory or U.S. military base or attend a DoDEA school. U.S. citizenship is not required; 3). Must identify as Black, African American, Latino, Hispanic, Indigenous or attend high school in a rural area or small town; and 4). Must be in the top 10% among PSAT 10 and PSAT/NMSQT test takers in 11th grade in their state for their award program OR have received a 3+ score on at least 2 distinct AP Exams by the end of 10th grade.
Students who receive recognition will earn academic honors and the opportunity to be celebrated by their school community. In addition, colleges and universities can use the programs in their recruitment to identify top-performing awardees who are opted into Student Search Service™.
