NATIONAL MERIT WINNERS IN NM

Scholars each to receive $2,500; less than 1% of applicants recognized

Fourteen New Mexico students have been awarded a National Merit Scholarship and $2,500 each.

Fourteen New Mexico students were named Tuesday as winners of National Merit $2,500 Scholarships.

The National Merit Scholarship Corporation pays for most of the single-payment scholarships, although companies and foundations help sponsor some of them.

More than 1.5 million high school juniors from about 21,000 high schools applied this cycle, taking the PSAT/NMSQT, which served as the initial screen of entrants.

Less than 1% of applicants, or 17,000, are named semifinalists and of those, about 7,500 become finalists and earn the “Merit Scholar” title, program officials said in a news release.

The nonprofit NMSC operates without government assistance. It was founded in 1955 specifically to conduct the scholarship program. This week’s is the second announcement of winners in the 2021 National Merit Scholarship Program.

About 1,000 national recipients of corporate-sponsored awards were announced last month and this coming June and July, some 4,000 college-sponsored Merit Scholarship winners will be named, according to the release.

The 14 New Mexico winners and their schools are:

Rosa Bieber-Stanley, Albuquerque Academy

Agustin J. Leon-Saenz, Albuquerque

High School

Casey T. Pei, La Cueva High School

Delaney F. Pendleton, Eldorado High School

Ryan D. Sanchez, La Cueva High School

Connor P. Spears, Albuquerque Academy

Sarah J. Wang, Albuquerque Academy

Luke Xue, La Cueva High School

Rachel E. Simpson, Deming High School

Stephen James Ewing, Las Cruces High School

Adam J. Rounsville, V. Sue Cleveland High School

Evan C. Marion, Santa Fe High School

Britney A. Hsu, Taos High School

Isaac R. Ortega, Los Alamos High School