BVA student semifinalist for National Merit Scholarship

Madison Grisnik was honored at Tuesday’s school board meeting for her achievement.

At Tuesday’s meeting, the Belle Vernon Area school board recognized a high school senior for becoming a semifinalist in the 2026 National Merit Scholarship Program.

Madison Grisnik received congratulations from the school board, and BVA High School Principal Zachary Just recognized her achievement as well.

The National Merit Scholarship Program is an academic competition in the United States that involves more than 1.3 million high school juniors entering the program by taking the PSAT.

Earlier this month, the National Merit Scholarship Corporation announced more than 16,000 semifinalists for the 2026 National Merit Scholarship Program. The 16,000 represent less than 1% of high school seniors who took the test in their junior year.

Just said Grisnik still had some work to do after it was announced she would be a semifinalist.

“Semifinalists then must meet high academic standards, submit an application, write an essay and earn a recommendation from their school to be considered a finalist, which would give them opportunities for over $26 million in scholarships,” Just said. “We are incredibly proud of Madison for earning this national recognition. It is a reflection of her hard work, dedication and intelligence. We look forward to seeing her move on to the next stage of this project process.”

More than 15,000 students are expected to advance to the finalist level, and in February, they will be notified of their designation.

“She’s so driven, she has such high aspirations, such high goals for herself, and she works extremely hard for them,” Just said about Grisnik. “She’s dedicated to all her classes. She’s one of the starting pitchers for the softball team. She’s involved in numerous clubs. She just contributes to the school in so many positive ways. It’s wonderful to see her recognized.”

Assistant superintendent resigns

Also Tuesday, the board unanimously voted to accept the resignation of Assistant Superintendent Alisa King as of Sept. 4.

King became the superintendent for the Washington School District.

Glasspool said the district plans to wait until the newly elected school board members are sworn in to hire a new assistant superintendent. That won’t happen until after the Nov. 5 general election.

The Washington School District posted on its Facebook page about the hiring of King as its new superintendent on Sept. 5.

“With a strong passion for education, a commitment to student success, and a proven track record of leadership, Mrs. King brings a vision of excellence, innovation, and collaboration to our schools,” the post read.

In other business:

• The board approved the purchase of two Opengate weapon detector systems and four handheld metal detectors from Ceia for $43,054. The money will come from the district’s capital reserve fund.