North Andover Student Named National Merit Scholar

NORTH ANDOVER, MA — A North Andover High School student was named a National Merit Scholar Wednesday.

The National Merit Scholarship Corporation announced 2,500 winners of $2,500 scholarships Wednesday.

They included Pranali S. Ashara, a North Andover resident and North Andover High School student. Ashara's probable career field is environmental science.

Corporate-sponsored National Merit Scholarships were announced in April. Winners of the college-sponsored scholarships will be announced on June 2 and July 12.

Between the three programs, about 7,500 scholars will be named. There were 16,000 finalists.

"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," the National Merit Scholarship Corporation said. "The number of winners named in each state is proportional to the state's percentage of the nation's graduating high school seniors."