By Kyle Roberts

Ruston High School saw five students named to the College Board National Recognition Program for academic achievements at school

These students are Alexis Thompson, Anhaar Wasi, Austin Guillory, Chaz Backhaus and Kirah Spivey.

“The students that were chosen for the college board national recognition come as no shock to me,” Ruston High principal Dan Gressett said. “Those students have worked tremendously hard in the classroom and represent Ruston high school so well. They are great students, great people, and we are so proud of them. What an honor, and one that they absolutely deserve.”

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Thompson, Wasi, Guillory, and Backhaus all received National Rural and Small Town Awards, while Spivey earned the National African American Recognition Award.

The criteria for these honors include a GPA of 3.5 or higher along with PSAT/NMSQT or PSTA 10 assessment scores that are within the top 10 percent of assessment takers in each state for for each award program or have earned a score of 3 or higher on two or more Advanced Placement Exams in ninth and tenth grade.

They also much attend school in a rural area or small town or identify as African American/Black, Hispanic American/Latino or Indigenous/Native.