Agoura Hills Student Named National Merit Scholar

AGOURA HILLS, CA — Kate Powledge, an Agoura Hills resident who attends Louisville High School in Woodland Hills, was named a National Merit Scholarship Corp. award winner this year.

The 2,500 Merit Scholars who each won a $2,500 scholarship were chosen from a pool of 16,000 finalists and announced Monday, according to the corporation.

Winners were judged based on their academic record, SAT and PSAT scores, participation in school and community activities, recommendations and essays. A team of college admissions officers and high school counselors chose the finalists.

This announcement marked the second round of National Merit Scholarship awardees in 2021. Additional winners will be announced June 2 and July 12.

The National Merit Scholarship Corp. said it will award a total of $30 million to 7,500 "academic champions" by this fall.

— — Michael Wittner and Patch staffer Courtney Teague contributed to this report.