Paducah Tilghman High School senior Nathaniel Skinner has been named a Commended Student in the 2023 National Merit Scholarship program.
Approximately 34,000 Commended Students throughout the nation are being recognized for their outstanding academic promise. Although they will not continue in the 2023 competition for National Merit Scholarship awards, Commended Students place among the top 50,000 scorers of more than 1.5 million students who took the 2021 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT). Nathaniel's score placed him in the 99th percentile of all students taking the 2021 qualifying test.
Nathaniel is an AP Scholar, an alumnus of the Kentucky Governor’s Scholar Program, a graduate of the Paducah Area Chamber of Commerce Youth LEAD Class #11, and is currently a Paducah Rotary Student of the Month. He’s a member of the Paducah Tilghman Varsity Soccer Team, the 2021 First District All-District Soccer Team, the Pumas FC Club Soccer Team, and is a Devotional Leader for Tilghman’s Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He is one of the Senior Class Representatives on the Tilghman Student Council and serves on the Executive Committee for the Baptist Health Medical Explorers Post 2501. He was also one of 47 sophomores selected from across the state of Kentucky to attend the University of Kentucky College of Medicine Area Health Education Center Summer Camp in 2021.
He is first violin, second chair, for the Tilghman Orchestra, plays tenor saxophone in the Tilghman Pep Band and Paducah Community Band, and plays fiddle, banjo and guitar with Time on the Strings. He’s a Tilghman Student Ambassador, member of the Interact Club and Pep Club, and Secretary for the Sustainability Club. He’s also a member of the National Honor Society and Beta Club, and former Paducah Bank Teen Ambassador and Paducah Pathfinder.
He competes with the Tilghman Academic Team, most recently winning third place in the District Governor’s Cup competition in Written Competition and fifth place in the individual testing subject of Science. For the past three years, he has served as both a volunteer and paid tutor and mentor at the Oscar Cross Boys and Girls Club.
Nathaniel is a member of Concord United Methodist Church and has held the position of Youth Representative to the Church Council. He also plays violin and banjo for the church praise and worship band. He is an active volunteer for several community projects and agencies, including the Community Kitchen, Family Kitchen, Starfish Orphan Ministries, mission trips to El Salvador, Christmas in the Park, Tornado Alley Christmas Angels, Jetton Field Clean-Up Day, and Mayfield Tornado Relief.
He won the 2020 National First Place Award for the Daughters of the American Revolution Short Story Contest, as well as First Place in the 2022 District NAACP Martin Luther King Junior Essay Contest for the High School Division. He’s a Centre College Fellow and a member of the Kentucky High School Athletic Association Academic All-State First Team.
Nathaniel is the son of William Skinner and Dr. Rennie Church Skinner.
“Nathaniel is an academic stand-out among his peers,” said Tilghman Principal Allison Stieg. “We know he’s worked hard for this achievement and we are so proud of him. He has a bright future ahead of him.”