Eight Local Students Named National Merit Finalists

Eight students from Scarsdale are among the 2,500 students awarded $2,500 Merit Scholarships by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) this year. The 2,500 Merit Scholar designees were chosen from a pool of more than 15,000 Finalists in the 2017 National Merit Scholarship Program.

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. The number of winners named in each state is proportional to the state's percentage of the nation's graduating high school seniors.

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 two standardized tests; contributions and leadership in school and community activities; an essay written by the Finalist; and a recommendation written by a high school official.

Here are the names of the winners:

Edgemont High School:
Anshul Barnwal
Federico J. Reyes Gomez
Michelle Kim

Horace Mann School:
Christie Du

Scarsdale High School:
Zoe L. Ewing
Michael S. Landau
Keshave M. Rastogi
Lauren H. Singer

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. Scholars may use their awards at any regionally accredited U.S. college or university.