One of Marshall's own has been named a National Merit Scholarship Program finalist, an honor that represents about 1 percent of more than 1.4 million who entered the 2007 competition, according to a district press release.

Barney Canson, a senior at Marshall High School, is among 15,000 academically exceptional students nationwide that the National Merit Scholarship Corporation has advanced to the final level of competition.

"It's great," said Canson Friday, who heard about his advancement when Principal Richard Davis announced it over the PA system this week. "I'm very excited...I was surprised.

"It was news to me," he said.

Approximately 8,200 finalists will be selected as Merit Scholarship winners, sharing in awards totaling $33 million. Students entered the competition by taking the 2005 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test.