10 area students awarded National Merit scholarships

Ten Chattanooga-area students received collegesponsored merit scholarships from the National Merit Scholarship Corp.

The announcement of winners was split, with six Chattanooga-area students announced in June, followed by four more in July.

U.S. colleges and universities sponsor the scholarships, which range from $500 to $2,000 each year for four years of undergraduate study at that school. One hundred and sixty colleges or universities in 42 states have underwritten the scholarships at 75 public institutions and 85 private institutions.

Winners of 2021 college-sponsored scholarships from the Chattanooga area include:

TENNESSEE

› Amanda M. Bacon, Chattanooga Christian School — National Merit Tennessee Technical University Merit Scholarship

› Collin J. Matthews, Chattanooga School for the Arts and Sciences — National Merit University of Alabama in Huntsville Platinum Scholarship

› Hunter McVay, Girls Preparatory School — National Merit University of Georgia Scholarship

› Braxton J. Mahr, Hamilton County Collegiate High School at Chattanooga State — National

Merit Boston University Scholarship

› Matthew B. Ashline, Signal Mountain High School — National Merit University of South Carolina Scholarship

› Carson B. Bock, Signal Mountain High School — National Merit University of Tennessee Scholarship

› Lauren G. Bennett, STEM School Chattanooga — National Merit University of Florida Scholarship

› Tucker D. Quering, STEM School Chattanooga — National Merit University of Alabama in Huntsville Platinum Scholarship

GEORGIA

› AnnMarie Thrash, Girls Preparatory School — National Merit University of Central

Florida Scholarship

ALABAMA

› Abby E. Carroll, Home school — National Merit University of Mississippi Scholarship

Other awards from the program include corporate-sponsored scholarships and $2,500 scholarships. Those, along with the college-sponsored scholarships, will be awarded to about 7,500 finalists nationwide.

The National Merit Scholarship

Program began in 1955, and students qualify through taking the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test. About 17,000 students qualified as semifinalists last fall; semifinalists for the National Merit Scholarship program — announced in September — included 26 Chattanooga-area students.