Two Washington High School students are among 600 distinguished North Carolina rising high school juniors and seniors selected to attend the 2011 Governor’s School this summer.

Chosen to attend the school were Namrataa D. Mehta and Hannah R. Sandy, both of Washington. They were chosen from more than 1,700 public and private school nominees statewide to attend the six-week summer program for academically or intellectually gifted students.

“These are outstanding students,” said Washington High School Principal Russell Holloman. “They are great role models, and I know they will represent us well at Governor’s School.”

Before being chosen to attend the school, students are nominated in one of 10 curriculum areas: art, choral music, dance, English, foreign language (French or Spanish), instrumental music, mathematics, natural science, social science and theater.

Mehta, 17, a junior, is known to her friends as “Neeti.” She is daughter of Dipak and Sharmila Mehta. She will attend Governor’s School East as a student in the natural science division. She was nominated by teacher Marie Swann.

Mehta said she is surprised and pleased to have been chosen to attend Governor’s School.

“It’s an opportunity that not many people get and it’s an experience that’s unique,” she said.

Mehta said she enjoys studying the sciences because different subjects “are all still related” to one another.

Sandy, 17, a junior, is the daughter of Ranee Singleton and Robert Sandy. She will attend Governor’s School West as a student in the social-science division. She was nominated by teacher Laura Thompson.

Like Mehta, Sandy said she is looking forward to the experience, although she is a little nervous about meeting all the other students at the school.

“It’s definitely a good opportunity,” she said. “It will be fun.”

Sandy said she enjoys studying the social sciences č that include subjects such as history and political science č because they are “applicable to a lot of different aspects of life.”

State Superintendent June Atkinson congratulated the students on their selection to Governor’s School.

“The Governor’s School has a renowned legacy for stimulating the creativity and inquisitiveness of our most gifted students. I’m confident that this year’s students will continue to build on this legacy,” she said.

The Governor’s School curriculum focuses on the exploration of the most recent ideas and concepts in each discipline, and it does not involve credits, tests or grades.

The Governor’s School of North Carolina, founded in 1963 by former Gov. Terry Sanford, is the oldest statewide summer residential program for academically or intellectually gifted high-school students in the nation.

The program, which is open to rising seniors only, with exceptions made for rising juniors in selected performing/visual arts areas, is located on two campuses: Governor’s School West and Governor’s School East. Governor’s School West is located at Salem College in Winston-Salem, and Governor’s School East is located at Meredith College in Raleigh.

The 2011 session runs from June 12 through July 23.