<p>My daughter was notified in early Feb that she was a NM finalist. From everything I have read on this board, schools were notified a week earlier than the kids were.</p>
<p>I have seen other HS announce and recognize their NM finalists--nothing from my D's school.</p>
<p>Finally, I emailed the principal, and she indicated she has heard nothing from National Merit. Could the letter have been lost or misplaced? Every other HS around seems to have been notified.</p>
<p>Would it be proper to contact NM and ask if the HS was notified? We are very proud of my D and her accomplishments and do not want this forgotten about. Her principal didn't seem especially interested.</p>
<p>On a similar topic, her first choice school (a NM participant), whom she named as her first choice to NM, gave her a rather poor financial aid package. Our EFC in their eyes is at least double what is should be, given the various online calculators. I'm wondering if the colleges were notified??</p>
<p>It would seem strange that NM would tell my daughter she was a finalist, but not tell anyone else!!</p>
<p>Contact the school she applied to, and find out if they have this information. Only about half the finalists actually get scholarships! Check out info on the web of your kid's first choice school, and see if they say that they give $ to all NM finalists, or just some. Better yet, call them. Good luck!</p>
<p>Called National Merit--they will neither confirm nor deny that notifications were sent out to high schools--principal (who seems disinterested) must call NM herself!!</p>
<p>Yet, the HS in the town next door got a photo in the paper of their NM finalists--they seem to have gotten the message.</p>
<p>Our principal can't wait to recognize athletes and musicians, but I guess scholars take a back seat.</p>
<p>Each school handles NM publicity individually. Some figure they make enough hoopla over semifinalists that they don't over finalists. You can always send in the information to the paper on your own.</p>
<p>Ours either. Wouldn't matter if it were just about this, but it is about everything. Lots of condescension to the kids. Always assuming they are all miscreants. Not so smooth with the parents either.</p>
<p>I have long wondered why so many people who don't like or enjoy kids go into education. To have power over the powerless? Ugh.</p>
<p>I just try to focus on the handful of extraordinary teachers my daughter has.</p>
<p>I hate when schools are like this. My son's school is refusing to give him the NM stuff, they're ****ed that he left for another school, and refused to take the state standardized tests before he left. As another poster said, you can call NM and ask for verification and explain the situation. They were able to tell me where my son stood, etc.</p>
<p>We tried calling NM--they refused to speak to my wife because we were not a high school principal. All we wanted to do was give the school and principal's name so they could re-mail.</p>
<p>Would neither confirm nor deny that the HS's had been notified.</p>
<p>So how is a principal to know that the mailings did not arrive if they will not reveal whether or not the mailings went out? CATCH-22?!?</p>
<p>I am a high school counselor...usually we receive winners' names before announcements are made by NM. However, we must keep it quiet until a specific date. Then we can make our announcements.
Perhaps the school counselor can look...even call NM if there is still confusion.</p>