Texas Instruments presents Junkins Scholarships

DALLAS, May 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Texas Instruments chairman, president and CEO, Rich Templeton, presented scholarships of $4,000 each to 21 National Merit Scholars at a luncheon on April 25 at the company's headquarters in Dallas. The Jerry R. Junkins Memorial Merit Scholarships, named in honor of TI's former chairman, president and CEO, are awarded to National Merit Program finalists who are sons or daughters of active, retired or deceased TI employees.

"The academic achievements of the Junkins Scholarship winners will lead them to great success in college and beyond. And their intelligence, energy and sense of goodwill give us great hope for the future of our industry, nation and society as a whole," said Templeton.

The 17 North Texas students who were honored for their academic accomplishments this year are:

Ryan G. Avery of Dallas, Newman Smith High School in Carrollton; Korok Chatterjee of Plano, Texas Academy of Math and Science in Denton; Nathan C. Graham of Denton, home-schooled; Wilson W. "Willy" Gu of Plano, Plano Senior High School; Thuy-Vy "Vivian" Ho of Highland Village, Edward S. Marcus High School of Flower Mound; Aasheesh Kanwar of Plano, Plano Senior High School; Helen C. Kerwin of Plano, Plano East Senior High School; Thomas R. Krenik of Garland, Texas Academy of Math and Science; Theresa R. Lii of Plano, Plano Senior High School; Rohan V. Menon of Dallas, Greenhill School in Addison; Andrew J. Mueller of Dallas, Highland Park High School; Stephanie M. Pan of Plano, Texas Academy of Math and Science; Sandhya Ramesh of Plano, Plano Senior High School; Aritra Sen of Plano, Texas Academy of Math and Science; Kevin H. Ting of Carrollton, Newman Smith High School; Daniel M. Valella of Dallas, St. Mark's School of Texas; and Michael Z. Yu of Plano, Plano West Senior High School.

The two honorees from the Houston area include Kate L. Sutton of Missouri City who attends Elkins High School, and Eric W. Zhang of Missouri City, who attends Dulles High School in Sugarland.

Another honoree is Jin Zhang of Tucson, Arizona, who attends University High School, and one honoree is from Minnesota -- Steven J. Shonts of Eden Prairie, Eden Prairie High School.

Each year, less than one percent of high school seniors nationwide achieve the status of National Merit Scholarship Program Semifinalist. Students are selected for the awards based on their scores on the 2007 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT), grades, leadership abilities, writing skills, extracurricular activities and potential for success in rigorous college studies.

"This year's Junkins Scholarship winners are truly remarkable," Templeton said. "One has filed a patent, and another started his own business. Another has been published. Several are multilingual, and all are active in their schools and communities. They plan to study fields as varied as engineering, biochemistry, international relations and economics. They will be our future physicians, scientists and leaders."

TI funds the scholarships in partnership with the National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC), a private, not-for-profit organization.

Note to editor: Following is a listing of the honorees by region, high school and school district (where applicable):

     NORTH TEXAS
     Edward S. Marcus High School, Lewisville ISD
     Thuy-Vy "Vivian" Ho of Highland Village

     Greenhill School
     Rohan V. Menon of Dallas

     Highland Park High School, Highland Park ISD
     Andrew J. Mueller of Dallas

     Newman Smith High School, Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD
     Ryan G. Avery of Dallas
     Kevin H. Ting of Carrollton

     Plano East Senior High School, Plano ISD
     Helen C. Kerwin of Plano

     Plano Senior High School, Plano ISD
     Wilson W. Gu of Plano
     Aasheesh Kanwar of Plano
     Theresa R. Lii of Plano
     Sandhya Ramesh of Plano

     Plano West Senior High School, Plano ISD
     Michael Z. Yu of Plano

     St. Mark's School of Texas
     Daniel M. Valella of Dallas

     Texas Academy of Math and Science, Denton
     Korok Chatterjee of Plano
     Thomas R. Krenik of Garland
     Stephanie M. Pan of Plano
     Aritra Sen of Plano

     Home-schooled
     Nathan C. Graham of Denton

     HOUSTON AREA, TEXAS
     Dulles High School, Fort Bend ISD
     Eric W. Zhang of Missouri City

     Elkins High School, Fort Bend ISD
     Kate L. Sutton of Missouri City

     TUCSON, ARIZONA
     University High School, Tucson Unified School District
     Jin Zhang of Tucson, Arizona

     MINNEAPOLIS AREA, MINNESOTA
     Eden Prairie High School, Eden Prairie Schools
     Steven J. Shonts of Eden Prairie

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