Irvington High School senior Adriana Palmieri is among an elite group of students nationwide to receive a scholarship in this year’s 2020 National Merit Scholarship Program competition.
“We are incredibly proud of Adriana,” Principal Juliet Gevargis-Mizimakoski said. “She is a hard worker who is always smiling and showing her Bulldog pride in our halls.”
Palmieri entered the competition as a junior, along with approximately 1.6 million students nationwide, by taking the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test. Students with the highest scores were chosen to advance to the semifinals before the pool was further narrowed down. Palmieri was selected as one of the winners from a group of more than 15,000 finalists.
According to its website, the National Merit Scholarship Program honors students who show exceptional academic ability and potential for success in rigorous college studies.
Adriana was also selected by the Enrico Fermi Educational Fund for their prestigious science academic scholarship. The Enrico Fermi Foundation honors students of Italian-American heritage for academic excellence with an aptitude for science and a sense of civic responsibility. As a student with a passion for research and discovery, Adriana participated in the IHS Science Research Program, whereby she interned at Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, conducting CRISPR Cas9 gene-editing research. CRISPR Cas9 is cutting edge technology addressing and solving 21st Century diseases. As part of the IHS Science Research Program, Adriana received the Westlake Science Fair Award in the category of Medicine and Health. Further recognition includes the Former Agents of the FBI Foundation, who recently selected Adriana to receive the Founders Scholarship, an academic scholarship based on her academic achievement, community service and leadership during her high school years.
Adriana will attend Cornell University in the fall of 2020. Cornell University selected Adriana as a Hunter R. Rawlings III Cornell Presidential Research Scholar. This prestigious program is based on academic achievement and demonstrated interest in research, inquiry and discovery. Adriana has expressed her intentions to continue her academic research and interests at Cornell University by studying the applications of CRIPSR Cas9 gene-editing technology to curing human diseases, addressing the negative impact of climate change that includes sustainable food systems and the global efforts to manage and regulate human food supply.
