WESTPORT, CT — Three Westport students — two from Staples High School and one from the Pierrepont School — were recently named National Merit $2500 Scholarship winners, the National Merit Scholarship Corporation announced.
The 2,500 Merit Scholar designees were chosen from among more than 15,000 outstanding Finalists in the 2024 National Merit Scholarship Program.
In Westport, the Staples winners are Leigh M. Foran and Peter J. Loranger, and from Pierrepont School, the winner is Ian Y. Chow. Foran’s probable career field is Activism; Loranger’s is Astrophysics; and Chow’s is Academia.
National Merit $2500 Scholarship winners are the Finalists in each state “judged to have the strongest combination of accomplishments, skills, and potential for success in rigorous college studies,” according to the scholarship corporation. The number of winners named in each state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the nation’s graduating high school seniors.
From the National Merit Scholarship Corporation announcement:
These Scholars were selected by a committee of college admissions officers and high school counselors, who appraised a substantial amount of information submitted by both the Finalists and their high schools: the academic record, including difficulty level of subjects studied and grades earned; scores from the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®); contributions and leadership in school and community activities; an essay written by the Finalist; and a recommendation written by a high school official.
NMSC finances most of these single-payment National Merit $2500 Scholarships. Corporations and company foundations that sponsor awards through NMSC also help underwrite these scholarships with grants they provide in lieu of paying administrative fees. Donations made to NMSC’s President’s Fund also provide funding for National Merit $2500 Scholarships. Scholars may use their awards at any regionally accredited U.S. college or university.
2024 National Merit Scholarship Competition
This year’s National Merit Scholarship Program began in October 2022 when high school juniors took the PSAT/NMSQT, which served as an initial screen of program entrants. Last fall, the highest-scoring participants in each state, representing less than one percent of the nation’s high school seniors, were named Semifinalists on a state-representational basis. More than 16,000 Semifinalists had an opportunity to continue in the competition.
From the Semifinalist group, over 15,000 students met the very high academic standards and other requirements to advance to the Finalist level of the competition. By the conclusion of the 2024 program, more than 6,870 Finalists will have earned the “Merit Scholar” title and received a total of nearly $26 million in college scholarships.
NMSC, a not-for-profit organization that operates without government assistance, was founded in 1955 specifically to conduct the National Merit Scholarship Program. The majority of scholarships offered each year are underwritten by approximately 320 independent corporate and college sponsors that share NMSC’s goals of honoring scholastically talented youth and encouraging academic excellence at all levels of education.
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