Two Lawrence-area students have qualified as semifinalists in the 2014 Presidential Scholar competition.

Lawrence High School senior Brooke Braman and Bishop Seabury Academy senior Joseph T. Westbrook were among only six Kansas students to make the semifinalist list.

Nationwide, only 3,900 students qualified to be nominated, based on their performance on the College Board SAT and ACT exams and through nominations made by chief state school officers or the National YoungArts Foundation’s nationwide YoungArts competition.

Established in 1964, the U.S. Presidential Scholar program honors and recognizes some of the nation’s most distinguished graduating high school seniors.

In 1979, the program was extended to recognize students who demonstrate exceptional talent in the visual, creative and performing arts. Each year, up to 141 students are named as Presidential Scholars, one of the nation’s highest honors for high school students.

The final awards go to one young man and one young woman from each state, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, and from U.S. families living abroad, as well as 15 chosen at-large and 20 U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts.

The 2014 winners were announced Monday and included two students from Johnson County. A ceremony will be held June 22, when each honoree will receive a Presidential Scholar Medallion.