The National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC®) awarded 12 Gwinnett County Public Schools (GCPS) seniors 2024 National Merit Scholarships financed by U.S. colleges and universities. Gwinnett’s College-Sponsored Merit Scholarship winners are:

Archer High School:

Brandon J. Woolfolk

Probable career field: Environmental Engineering
National Merit University of Central Florida Scholarship

 

Brookwood High School:

Aidan T. Stanley

Probable career field: Computer Science

National Merit University of Alabama Scholarship

 

Duluth High School:

Cassandra E. Norris

Probable career field: Counseling

National Merit University of Alabama Scholarship

 

Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science, and Technology:

Gabriel M. Babb

Probable career field: Mechanical Engineering

National Merit University of Georgia Scholarship

 

Harold H. Fu

Probable career field: Video Game Design

National Merit University of Georgia Scholarship

 

Haven A. Hardy

Probable career field: Environmental Engineering

National Merit University of Georgia Scholarship

 

Diana E. Mawejje

Probable career field: Cell Biology

National Merit University of Tulsa Scholarship

 

Mill Creek High School:

Alexander J. Vaitl

Probable career field: Computer Science

National Merit University of Georgia Scholarship

 

North Gwinnett High School:

Aaron J. Kim

Probable career field: Civil Engineering

National Merit Vanderbilt University Scholarship

 

Keira C. Olds

Probable career field: Aerospace Engineering

National Merit Purdue University Scholarship

 

Jonathan K. Schofield

Probable career field: Computer Engineering

National Merit University of Georgia Scholarship

 

Jenny Thai

Probable career field: Pediatrics

National Merit University of Georgia Scholarship

 

     The National Merit Scholars are part of a group of distinguished students nationwide judged to have the strongest combination of accomplishments, skills, and potential for success in rigorous college studies. Officials of each sponsor college selected their winners from among the Finalists in the 2024 National Merit Scholarship Program who will attend their institution. The scholarships provide between $500 and $2,000 annually for up to four years of undergraduate study at the institution financing the scholarship. 

     This year, 149 higher education institutions are underwriting Merit Scholarship awards through the National Merit Scholarship Program. Sponsor colleges and universities include 77 private and 72 public institutions located in 42 states and the District of Columbia.

     College-sponsored Merit Scholarship winners are a part of the distinguished group of over 6,900 high school seniors who received National Merit Scholarships for college undergraduate study worth nearly $26 million.

     High school juniors entered the 2024 National Merit Scholarship Program when they took the 2022 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. Last fall, more than 16,000 semifinalists were named on a state-representational basis in numbers proportional to each state’s percentage of the national total of graduating high school seniors. Semifinalists were the highest-scoring program entrants in each state and represented less than one percent of the nation’s seniors.

     To compete for Merit Scholarship awards, semifinalists first had to advance to the finalist level of the competition by fulfilling additional requirements. Each semifinalist was asked to submit a detailed scholarship application, which included writing an essay and providing information about extracurricular activities, awards, and leadership positions. Semifinalists also had to have an outstanding academic record, be endorsed and recommended by a high school official, and earn SAT® or ACT® scores that confirmed the qualifying test performance. From the semifinalist group, more than 16,000 met the requirements for finalist standing, and more than half of the finalists will be Merit Scholarship winners in 2024.