Fifty-nine Beaverton School District seniors earned semifinalist status in the 2027 National Merit Scholarship Program, with Sunset High School accounting for 27 of them.

The district announced the achievement on Friday, Sept. 11. BSD's 59 semifinalists represent nearly a third of Oregon's 191 total honorees, according to The Oregonian, which published the full statewide list. The district is one of dozens across Oregon, yet it produced 31 percent of the state's semifinalists.

Three Bethany-area high schools account for 49 of the district's 59 semifinalists. Sunset led with 27, Westview followed with 16 and Mountainside contributed six. The remaining 10 came from the International School of Beaverton (five), Beaverton Academy of Science and Engineering (three), Aloha High School (one) and a homeschool/online category (one).

Among the Sunset honorees are Aneesh Agarwal, Shreya Chopra, Hannah Ho, Pablo Quesnel-Gonzalez and Claudia Zhuge. Westview's semifinalists include Advait Ajay, Lilian Bian, Nathan Chandra, Isha Ganpule and Aditi Raguraman. Mountainside's six include Calvin Huang, Yunah Kim and Brennett Rencher.

The National Merit Scholarship Corporation announced the nationwide semifinalists on Wednesday, Sept. 9. More than 1.2 million high school juniors entered the program by taking the 2025 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test. Fewer than 1 percent earned semifinalist status.

Dr. Shelly Reggiani, BSD's associate superintendent for teaching and learning, said the recognition reflects the work of students, families and educators. She called the 59 honorees a reflection of "our district's commitment to creating environments where students can truly belong, believe and achieve."

To advance to finalist standing, semifinalists must complete an application process that includes a school endorsement. About 95 percent of semifinalists are expected to reach finalist status, according to the BSD announcement. Roughly half of finalists will receive a National Merit Scholarship.

The program will award approximately 6,930 scholarships worth nearly $26 million next spring.