Three Bartlesville High School seniors were recently named 2009-10 National Hispanic Recognition Program scholars. The distinguished trio includes Patricia Lowry, the daughter of Richard and Rita Lowry; Alexys Gonzales, the daughter of Jessie and Melinda Gonzales; and Daniel Sauceda, the son of Baldomero and Patricia Sauceda.

The National Hispanic Recognition Program was initiated in 1983 to identify outstanding Hispanic/Latino high school students. This year, the NHRP is recognizing nearly 5,000 students selected from a pool of more than 200,000 students who took the 2008 PSAT/NMQT/PAA and identified themselves as Hispanic/Latino. Students recognized by the NHRP are at least one-quarter Hispanic/Latino (based on the program’s definition) and have achieved a minimum PSAT/NMSQT/PAA score for their region. Students with grade-point averages of 3.5 or higher are designated as scholars, and those with GPAs of 3.0 to 3.49 are honorable mentions.

The list of recognized students from the NHRP is distributed to subscribing four-year post-secondary institutions in October. This gives the students an opportunity to hear from colleges and universities which are particularly interested in communicating with academically outstanding students of Hispanic/Latino heritage. The National Hispanic Recognition Program is a product of the College Board. The nationwide selection includes students from throughout the United States as well as Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam as well as U.S. citizens from international and APO schools.