Twelve Greater Cincinnati black students are semifinalists in the National Achievement Scholarship Program.

        They are among 1,500 students nationally selected as semifinalists from among the 110,000 black students who took the 1999 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test. The students are eligible to compete for 700 scholarships worth $2.5 million that will be awarded to finalists this spring.

        Victoria Stroud, a Walnut Hills High School senior, was the only one of the 12 who also qualified as a semifinalist in the National Merit Scholarship Corp.'s 46th annual National Merit Scholarship Program.

        She attributed her success to her parents, Mary and Irving Stroud.

        “They've guided me a lot and made me want to do well,” the 17-year-old said.

        Fluent in Spanish, Victoria plans to go to Florida A&M and major in business.

        About 75 percent of the semifinalists will be named finalists based on submission of a detailed scholarship application.

        Other semifinalists are:

        • Lauren Kirk, Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy

        • Kwame Adu-Wusu, Lakota West High School

        • Brandon James and Marquis Wofford, Princeton High School

        • Rahwa Ghebre-Ab, Ferrial Lanton, and Andrea Merrick, Seven Hills Upper School

        • Trenita Brookshire and John Terry, Summit Country Day School

        • Jerreau Taylor, Winton Woods High School

        • Sommer Dunham, Woodward High School

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