2012 National Merit® $2500 Scholarship Winners Named

[Howard Hartman]

2012 National Merit® $2500 Scholarship Winners Named

Twenty-eight Montgomery County Students Among the Winners

Montgomery County Winners

(Evanston, Illinois) National Merit $2500 Scholarship winners were announced today by National Merit Scholarship Corporation (nmsc). The 2,500 Merit Scholar designees were chosen from a talent pool of more than 15,000 outstanding Finalists in the 2012 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. They were selected by a committee of college admissions officers and high school counselors. These Scholars may use their awards at any regionally accredited U.S. college or university.

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.

All Finalists competed for these awards. To select scholarship winners, a committee of educators 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. The number of winners named in each state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the nation’s graduating high school seniors.

2012 National Merit Scholarship Competition

This year’s competition for National Merit Scholarships began in October 2010 when approximately 1.5 million juniors in some 22,000 high schools took the Preliminary sat/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (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. Only these 16,000 Semifinalists had an opportunity to continue in the competition.

From the Semifinalist group, 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 2012 program, about 8,300 Finalists will have earned the “Merit Scholar” title and received a total of over $35 million in college scholarships.

NMSC, a not-for-profit corporation that operates without government assistance, was founded in 1955 specifically to conduct the annual National Merit Scholarship Program. The majority of scholarships offered each year are underwritten by approximately 440 independent corporate and college sponsors that share nmsc’s goals of honoring scholastically talented youth
and encouraging academic excellence at all levels of education.

Montgomery County Winners

Public Schools

Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School

Elizabeth W. Himwich, Bethesda
Probable career field: Physics
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP

Dimitrios Halikias, Chevy Chase
Probable career field: Economics
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP


Montgomery Blair High School

Enoch S. Hsiao, Rockville
Probable career field: Computer Science
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP


Poolesville High School

Nadia O. Abutaleb, Derwood
Probable career field: Bioengineering
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP

Eric J. Harrison, Germantown
Probable career field: Computer Science
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP


Quince Orchard High School

Jane A. Chen, Gaithersburg
Probable career field: Law
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP


Richard Montgomery High School

Kari B. Barclay, Bethesda
Probable career field: Theatre
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP

Samantha L. Reback, Bethesda
Probable career field: Neuroscience/Education (College Professor)
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP

Zachary A. Kram, Brookeville
Probable career field: Law
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP

Janet An, North Potomac
Probable career field: Business
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP

Eunah Lee, Olney
Probable career field: Medicine
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP


Springbrook High School

Gregory W. Ridgway, Silver Spring
Probable career field: Mathematics
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP


Walt Whitman High School

Lucy Chen, Bethesda
Probable career field: Medicine
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP

Kevin Cheng, Bethesda
Probable career field: Law
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP


Walter Johnson High School

Laura C. Murnane, Garrett Park
Probable career field: Pediatrics
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP


Winston Churchill High School

Derek L. Gritz, Bethesda
Probable career field: Medicine
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP

Charlotte W. Bourg, Potomac
Probable career field: Science
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP

Raymond Y. Li, Potomac
Probable career field: Medicine
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP

Private Schools

Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School, Rockville, MD

Daniel N. Liss, Silver Spring
Probable career field: Physics
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP


Georgetown Day School, Washington, DC

Jared L. Cowan, Bethesda
Probable career field: Science/Research
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP UNDERWRITTEN BY 3M COMPANY

Alex J. Eppler, Bethesda
Probable career field: International Relations
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP UNDERWRITTEN BY 3M COMPANY


Gonzaga College High School, Washington, DC

Michael D. Ledecky, Bethesda
Probable career field: Journalism
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP


Landon School

Vincent J. Kindfuller, Potomac
Probable career field: Military Service
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP


Melvin J. Berman Hebrew Academy, Rockville, MD

Aaron Lev Troy, Chevy Chase
Probable career field: Medicine
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP


National Cathedral School, Washington, DC

Julia M. Maddrey, Chevy Chase
Probable career field: Business
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP


Potomac School, McLean, VA

Michael P. Desantis, Bethesda
Probable career field: Economics
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP


Saint Albans School, Washington, DC

Akeda M. Hosten, Silver Spring
Probable career field: Engineering
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP



Stone Ridge School of the Sacred Heart

Elizabeth P. Master, Bethesda
Probable career field: Mathematics
NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP

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About the scholarships:

NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP
These awards are supported by National Merit Scholarship Corporation's own funds.

NATIONAL MERIT $2500 SCHOLARSHIP UNDERWRITTEN BY 3M COMPANY
3M, a diversified, worldwide manufacturer, has its corporate headquarters in St. Paul, MN. These scholarships, a part of 3M's
significant support to education, reflect the company's strong belief that higher education is the key to providing qualified future
leaders for our businesses, our communities, and our country.