For the Miami Valley Today

TROY — Troy High School senior Morgan Kaiser has been named a National Merit Semifinalist by the National Merit Scholarship Program.

Kaiser recorded one of the top scores in the nation on the PSAT test, taken in the fall of 2020 by high school juniors. To be considered for a National Merit Scholarship, Kaiser must advance to Finalist standing in the competition by meeting high academic standards and all other requirements explained in the information provided to her by the National Merit Scholarship Program.

“When I got my score back after the PSAT, I think it was December of 2020, I knew I had a good score and I was excited to find out if I had made National Merit, but then I had kind of forgotten about it completely until (THS guidance counselor) Mrs. (Loren) Evilsizor called me in to tell me, and then I was just completely shocked,” Kaiser said. “It was a really cool idea and something to be excited about and something to look forward to, maybe getting it, but I never thought it would actually happen. It was a really huge honor, and I was really excited to tell my mom and dad.”

Kaiser, who also is near the top of the class of 2022 in terms of grade point average, said school is important to her as she looks toward her future.

“School is really important to me,” she said. “I take a lot of pride in my school work. It’s something I have complete control over. I can control my grades, I can control how I study, I can control how I listen in class and participate, so it’s something that I just take pride in, because I know it’s really important for my future.”

While school is important to Kaiser, so too are the many extracurricular and volunteer activities in which she participates. Her list of accomplishments outside of the classroom is every bit as impressive as her list inside of it.

She has played volleyball and basketball all four years, earning scholar-athlete, All-Miami Valley League, team MVP and team captain awards. She’s also been involved in student council, Senior Cabinet, Junior Cabinet, ASTRA, Key Club and Latin Club, holding leadership positions in all of those organizations.

Balancing all of her school work and activities isn’t always easy, but Kaiser makes it work.

“It’s difficult, but I really, really enjoy the things that I’m a part of,” she said. “I think when you enjoy something, it’s really easy to find time for it. I have really great teachers, and all of my club advisors and coaches are really understanding, and they understand what I’m going through and the classes I’m taking. If something comes up, I can always talk to my club advisors to find out what I missed and what I need to catch up on.”

Kaiser said she is happy to go to Troy High School because of all the opportunities it provides.

“It means a lot. I love Troy High School. I am so blessed to go here. All of the opportunities we have, you know not every school has all of these clubs and all of these activities and all of these sports that we all have the opportunity to participate in. To represent Troy High School is a great honor. It’s something I take pride in, and I want to represent Troy High School the best that I can.”

Kaiser’s future is bright. She’s looking at a variety of high-level colleges and universities and ultimately hopes to attend medical school.

“I’m not sure where I want to go yet,” she said. “There’s so many amazing and incredible colleges out there, and I’m still kind of doing my college search. But I would really love to major in neuroscience and hopefully go to med school and become a neurosurgeon or a pathologist, something in that realm. There are so many different opportunities and so many different things you can do in medical school, and I’m just really excited to explore and find what I want to do with my future.”

For video of Morgan Kaiser’s reaction to being named a National Merit Semifinalist, go to https://bit.ly/MorganKaiser.