Bach Named National Merit Finalist

Lorena High School student Vance Bach has been named a National Merit Scholarship Finalist. He is the first Lorena ISD student since 2012 to receive this prestigious recognition. “It’s a great feeling of pride,” said Bach. “It makes my teachers proud as well, and I’m very happy that it makes them so proud, and also my parents as well. I’m very happy to make them so proud”

Lorena High School teachers Ann Burnside and Dr. Greg Borchardt have both had the opportunity to work with Bach. Burnside is thrilled that he has been named a National Merit Finalist. “It couldn’t happen to a nicer kid. He works hard, he deserves this,” said Burnside. “We tell kids that if you do the right things, and you push forward, and you try really hard that good things will happen, and this is what's happened to Vance, that he’s gotten that status. I could not be prouder.” Dr. Borchardt calls Bach an exceptional student and person, and he was not surprised that Bach was named a National Merit Finalist. “He excels at academics, but also just has the work ethic that makes it pretty obvious that he’s going to do very well on any test, anything that he’s trying to do,” said Borchardt.

It may have been over 10 years since a Lorena ISD student has been named a National Merit Finalist, but Bach’s selection this year could serve a springboard for others to chase the goal, and reach it. “My hope is this is the start of a long line of National Merit Scholar finalists at Lorena High School. Our hope is that we are going to continue this tradition,” said Lorena ISD Superintendent Dr. Joe Kucera. “It’s very exciting for us. I have been having conversations with students about this, and to finally have one now is very exciting. I hope that we are going to continue this trend.”

After graduation from Lorena High School Bach has big plans that have been in the works for a long time. “I decided in fifth grade I wanted to do neurosurgery, so I am going to Baylor for four years for a bachelors. I'm doing neuroscience. I’m also doing pre-med, and I am doing Baylor interdisciplinary core which is a program in the honors college that replaces all of your core classes with more philosophically, religiously based classes. After that I am going to medical school. After that I have seven years of residency, five or six of which will be just general training, and then I want to specialize in neurosurgery.”

National Merit Finalist

Vance Bach named a National Merit Finalist

Show Transcript

amazing things happen in Lorena ISD classrooms every day there's a lot to be proud of and a student in this classroom has added to the list of outstanding accomplishments Vance Bach has been named a National Merit finalist he's the first Lorena the ISD student to do that in over a decade it felt great because it's something that very few people achieve in high school and it has a lot of possibilities a lot of opportunities that come attached with it so it was very satisfying and it was something that I've wanted for a long time that I worked for I was absolutely thrilled absolutely thrilled couldn't happen to a nicer kid he works hard he deserves this uh we tell kids that you know if you do the right things and you and you push forward and you try really hard that good things will happen and this is what's happened to Vance that he's gotten that status I could not be prouder I wasn't surprised I knew that he had you know done very well and then he was a semi-finalist and um like I said he just really excels at um at academics but also just has the work ethic that makes it pretty obvious that he's going to you know do very well on uh any test anything that comes you know that uh he's trying to do in September of 2024 Bach was selected as a National Merit semi finalists for his performance on the PSAT and National Merit Scholarship qualifying test he was 1 of 16,000 semi finalists selected from the approximate 1.5 million Juniors who took the test box Journey was not done there to go from semi-finals to finalists you have to write an essay you have to answer questions you have to submit your transcripts um every class you've taken in high school and college in the case of tool creditors and such um community service any sort of volunteering you've done leadership extracurriculars clubs everything that you have done with your life throughout the entire of high school is is included in becoming a finalist National Merit uh scholarship is is been around for a long long time uh all the schools participate and and across the nation and so when you can get your uh 1 of your students recognized that this this level uh it puts them in the elite group of academic students across the country a Bach has allowed himself to take a breath and realize what he's done on the long road to becoming a National Merit finalist but there is so much more ahead in box bright future starting with college I decided in fifth grade I wanted to do neurosurgery um so I'm going to Baylor for 4 years for a bachelor's um doing Neuroscience I'm also doing pre-med and I am doing Baylor interdisciplinary core which is a program in the Honors College that replaces all of your core classes with more like philosophically religiously based classes um it's sort of a it's sort of a mixture of things it's philosophy it's religion it's sociology it's English its history but it combines all these things into 1 set of classes that you take throughout 4 years after that I'm going to medical school I'm thinking the ANM College of Medicine maybe the Baylor College of Medicine sort of depends on what doing at that point in my life where I want to go uh but after that I have 7 years of residency um 5 or 6 of which will be just general training and then I want to specialize in neurosurgery so that's my plans