Since we’re all sure that everyone’s been diligently “studying” their vocabulary over the summer, here is a mere ten extra words we think is essential for you to know for a better education at AHS.

Clomework: Agonizing and time-consuming labor given by teachers in an attempt to further educate your (already) fried and overused brain. Usually supposed to be done at home, but often finished during class time.
“The teacher caught Mary doing her clomework when she was supposed to be working on a project.”

Glart: Death vehicle, usually carrying the extremely overworked and exhausted deans. Just like a golf cart but never seen used for golf. Often this automobile carries poor, tardy student-victims who spent the night before diligently cramming for an exam.
“I was on crutches due to my leg injury and when I was slowly walking to class, a glart almost ran me over.”

Vicdents: Poor victims of the law, forced to sit through the joyous process of being enlightened.
“When I saw all the nerdy vicdents in the school, I immediately decided not to apply there."

Sassroom: A beautiful sanctuary for the underprivileged and uneducated. This is the wonderful place where all tests, quizzes, sass, and homework are given. (Typically contains an air conditioner on full blast).
“When the bell rang, I went to my first period sassroom to get a good seat but all the good seats were taken and people were sassing each other in protest.”

D-Hell: A densely-populated route that is notorious as the epicenter of the invasion of personal space. This hallway is generally a serene, open walkway during class hours. If you are ever wandering the halls while classes are still in session, take the opportunity to stop by D-Hell to experience the spacious tranquility and breathe in the stillness of the air.
“After walking through D-Hell, I realized my wallet was missing.”

Rollpacks: An endangered backpack species, uncommon to be seen used at AHS. Highly misunderstood baggage, its wheels on the bottom make rolling heavy books a simple task. Unfortunately, due to outrageous trends, students prefer stunting their growth by carrying all their weighty belongings on their back.
“Mother! I don’t want a rollpack for school; no one uses them anymore.”

PTOJ: (pee-toh-juh) P to J commute. A harsh and difficult test of agility, challenging all students blessed with this classroom combination in their daring schedule. (Hint: Try to avoid D-Hell; speed walking or jogging is recommended).
“My PTOJ often involves stealing a golf cart and running over a few slow students.”

Credextra: A small reminder that confirms the fact that teachers have hearts. Also known as extra credit.
“That is the most big-hearted teacher on campus because he gives so much credextra.”

Gack: A gummy substance sneakily chewed in attempt to conceal the course of action from teachers, found typically under the desks or on the floors in many classrooms. When accidentally touched, people normally say the word “Gack!”
“I accidentally put my hand under the desk and when I got my hand out of the mess it was full of gack.”

Plastoturf: Small, black pieces of plastic that aimlessly slip into your shoes and socks by the hundreds. Usually this process goes without notice, but later you find them infuriatingly scattered around your house.
“Our lawn is flooded with plastoturf up to the point where it looks like the football field.”

Earlier this month, the semifinalists for the 2010 National Merit Scholarship program were announced, and a remarkable 32 seniors from Arcadia High School made the cut. They will now have the chance to advance in a nationwide competition for scholarships given by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. The NMSC also sponsors the National Achievement Scholarship program, which rewards high-achieving Black American students. Our school boasts one semifinalist for this competition: Wesley Tyner.

The semifinalists for both programs are selected based on their performance on the PSAT. Administered every October, the PSAT is basically a condensed “warm-up” version of the much-feared SAT Reasoning Test. Don’t be fooled by the length of the PSAT though. Semifinalist Stanley Yuan explains, “Even though the PSAT is shorter than the SAT, it’s actually harder because you can’t make mistakes. If you do, you get docked heavily.”

For those who don’t commit such errors, however, the PSAT offers the chance to win a scholarship for college. Those who score at or above the minimum cutoff in their state will achieve semifinalist status, making them eligible to win up to $2,500 to go towards their college tuition.

As one may imagine, National Merit Scholar hopefuls face stiff competition. Over 1.4 million students take the PSAT each year, but only 34,000 receive Letters of Commendation in late September while 16,000 become semifinalists. The National Achievement Scholarship Program recognizes 3,100 Outstanding Participants and 1,600 semifinalists. Students in all four categories will be allowed to send the news of their excellent testing performance to two colleges of their choices.

For semifinalists, the path towards a scholarship is far from over, and that means more work. In order to keep advancing in either competition, semifinalists must earn an SAT score which corresponds with their success on the PSAT, maintain a high level of academic performance, and procure letters of recommendation from their high school counselors. They also need to fill out an application which includes an essay and information about extracurricular activities, honors or awards received, or other notable achievements. Semifinalist Ruodi Duan expressed surprise at the amount of work required, saying, “I didn’t know there was a huge process involved. It’s basically a repeat of college applications.”

After completing all this paperwork (with ample assistance from the ever-hardworking counselors, the unsung heroes within this whole process), the semifinalists will wait for another four to five months. In January and February, the names of the 15,000 National Merit finalists and 1,300 National Achievement finalists will be announced. Over the months that follow, scholarship recipients will be notified by mail. Typically, the NMSC names 8,200 National Merit Scholars and 800 National Achievement Scholars each year.

Not being selected, however, doesn’t necessarily disqualify a candidate from receiving a scholarship. A number of Special Scholarships are available for students who received recognition from the NMSC but did not qualify as finalists.

For more information on both scholarship programs, visit http://nationalmerit.org.
Congratulations and best of luck to this year’s Semifinalists!

How you can win a scholarship!

Although only juniors are eligible for scholarships, freshmen and sophomores are welcome to take the PSAT’s as practice. Many people find this to be an affordable and easy way of gearing up for the SAT Reasoning Test.

This year’s PSAT will be administered on Oct. 17 (you can unwind at the Homecoming Dance later that same day!). Sign-ups are in front of the Music Building during lunch only and will take place from Sept. 21 to Oct. 2. Remember to bring a photo ID and $30 (checks should be made out to “Arcadia Music Club”). Late sign-ups and walk-ins will be charged an additional $10.

Semifinalists in 2009 National Merit Scholarship Competition：

Alex An, Andrew Lin, Kevin Yu

Pallavi Bugga, Bryan Lu, Stanley Yuan

Andrew Chang, Jessica Ma, Rosaline Zhang

Winston Chang, Casey Mak, Tom Zhao

Abel Chiao, Cora Ormseth                     

Michelle Chien, Timofey Semenov

Carrie Chow, Steven Shieh

Julie Chung, Thomas Tang

Lily Dai, Wesley Tyner

Ruodi Duan, Shen Wang

Tiffany Gu, Angela Wang

Derek Ha, Sam Wang

Alex Hu, Edward Xue

Daniel Li, Emily Yang