Wayland HS Student Wins National Merit Scholarship

WAYLAND, MA — A Wayland High School senior is among 53 Massachusetts students awarded a National Merit scholarship this week.

Senior Porter Moody will get $2,500 toward college from the National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC). He plans to study psychology, according to the NMSC.

Each spring, thousands of high schoolers across the nation apply for NMSC scholarships, which are given out in waves ahead of graduation.

"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 organization said in a news release Wednesday. "The number of winners named in each state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the nation’s graduating high school seniors."

At the end of April, the NMSC released a round of scholarships backed by corporations. Two more scholarship rounds are coming on June 2 and July 12.