By Gerri Miller
Elmore/Autauga News
A Prattville senior is making a name for himself by not only giving his time and talent to community, but he is also National Merit Scholar Finalist.
Carter Stockman is the only student in Prattville this year to earn this distinction and one of only 200 in the state. As a finalist, he’s competing for 7,500 National Merit Scholarships worth $32,000 that were offered nationwide this spring.
The National Merit®Scholarship Program is an academic competition for recognition and scholarships that began in 1955. Approximately 1.6 million high school students enter the program each year. Being named as a finalist is one of the highest distinctions a student can achieve.
Interestingly, Carter has a twin brother named Cleveland Carter who made it to the semifinal round in the competition. The boys are 18.
Their mother is Janice Stockman, the principal at Prattville Junior High School. She said she couldn’t be prouder of her boys. “Being an educator, one of my main goals is for people to be lifelong learners,” Stockman said. “The fact they both enjoy the process of learning and to see their hard work has been phenomenal. I am proud of their accomplishments; I am prouder of their tenacity and how they treat others respectfully.”
Their dad is also an educator. Jeff Stockman is an assistant principal at Pine Level Elementary School.
Carter said he took the test in October of his junior year. He found out earlier this year that he made it to the finalist round.
“I am thankful for the opportunity to demonstrate what I have learned as I have had great teachers along the way,” Carter said.
Both Cleveland and Carter are Eagle Scouts with Troop 25, the highest distinction one can earn in Boy Scouts of America. For his Eagle Scout project, Carter used a 3-D printer to make 300 face shields for healthcare workers at Prattville Baptist Hospital and Baptist hospitals in Montgomery. Face shields were desperately needed at the time because it was the beginning of the pandemic and the hospitals faced a shortage.
“I worked pretty much nonstop for about three weeks making face shield after face shield,” Carter said.
Cleveland designed and constructed a Gaga ball pit at Prattville Elementary School. Gaga ball is a variant of dodge ball, it is a high-intensity sport which combines striking, dodging, jumping, running and more with the ball.
At school, Carter is a Student Government Association member, competes on the robotics team and is involved in the Technology Students Association. Although he has not yet picked a college, he has narrowed the field to Auburn University or the University of Alabama. He plans to major in mechanical engineering.
Carter said he just competed in a statewide robotics competition and placed eighth in the state. He also runs a rapid prototyping business and has designed items ranging from educational tools to cookie cutters.
Cleveland has decided he will attend the University of Alabama. He is on the speech and debate team along with the robotics team and had an article published in Philosophy magazine. He said he is most interested in math and philosophy.
Mrs. Stockman said her boys are quite humble about their achievements. When first asked for a quote, Carter had this to say: “I took a test and wrote an essay. It wasn’t a big deal.”
We would say look for big things wherever the Stockman twins go.
