36 Hudson Valley Seniors Win 2021 National Merit Scholarships

HUDSON VALLEY, NY — The National Merit Scholarship Corporation announced the 2021 National Merit $2,500 Scholarship winners on Wednesday. The designees were chosen from a talent pool of more than 15,000 finalists, and 36 of them are from the Hudson Valley.

About 1,000 recipients of corporate-sponsored Merit Scholarship awards were already named, and on June 2 and July 12, some 4,000 college-sponsored Merit Scholarship winners will be announced. By the conclusion of this year’s competition, about 7,500 academic champions will have won National Merit Scholarships worth roughly $30 million.

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 number of winners named in each state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the nation’s graduating high school seniors.

These Scholars were selected by a committee of college admissions officers and high school counselors, who appraised a substantial amount of information submitted by both the Finalists and their high schools: the academic record, including difficulty level of subjects studied and grades earned; scores from the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test; contributions and leadership in school and community activities; an essay written by the Finalist; and a recommendation from a high school official.

Local students winning Merit Scholarships in this second round:

• Elizabeth S. Chun. Ardsley High School. Probable career field: Public Policy
• Marie-Helene Tome. Ardsley High School. Probable career field: Biochemical Engineering
• Nitin Seshadri of Baldwin Place. Somers High School. Probable career field: Medicine
• Kathryn Petlyuk of Bedford. Byram Hills High School. Probable career field: Engineering
• Clara Q. Chen of Briarcliff Manor. Loomis Chaffee School, Windsor CT. Probable career field: Undecided
• Jack Sendek. Briarcliff High School. Probable career field: Biomedical Engineering
• Avery E. Widen. Bronxville High School. Probable career field: Computer Science
• Rebecca Monge. Carmel High School. Probable career field: Earth Science
• Ryan A. Guber of Chappaqua. Horace Greeley High School. Probable career field: Chemical Engineering
• Lori Saxena of Chappaqua. Horace Greeley High School. Probable career field: Neuroscience
• Kayla B. Singer of Chappaqua. Horace Greeley High School. Probable career field: Finance
• Kathryn Jane Gagnon. Cornwall Central High School. Probable career field: Engineering
• Grace Y. Tian of Cortlandt Manor. Yorktown High School. Probable career field: Applied Mathematics
• Daniel Luo of Harriman. Monroe Woodbury High School. Probable career field: Science/Research
• Caleb H. Painter, Hastings High School. Probable career field: Software Engineering
• Nicholas G. Papapanou, Irvington High School. Probable career field: Engineering
• Abigail V. Tucker of Larchmont. Mamaroneck High School. Probable career field: Undecided
• Maxwell V. Semegran, Mahopac High School. Probable career field: Government Service
• Dev I. Arbeiter, New Rochelle High School. Probable career field: Law
• Wenting Yu, New Rochelle High School. Probable career field: Psychiatry
• Nicholas A. Tukuru, Ossining High School. Probable career field: Mathematics
• Benjamin R. Hahn, Pleasantville High School. Probable career field: Law
• Breanna D. Brownson of Port Chester. Rye High School. Probable career field: Cell Biology
• Alexander Zhu of Poughkeepsie. Spackenkill High School. Probable career field: Law (Intellectual Property)
• Julia K. Brand of Purchase. Riverdale Country School. Probable career field: Development Economics
• Alexis L. Francis, Rye High School. Probable career field: Undecided
• Chloe H. Ng of Rye Brook. Blind Brook High School. Probable career field: Science/Research
• Peiling Megan Niu, Scarsdale High School. Probable career field: International Relations
• Adam H. Wasserman, Scarsdale High School. Probable career field: Mechanical Engineering
• Owen M. Dugan of Sleepy Hollow. Probable career field: Physics
• Olivia Cartano of Thornwood. Westlake High School. Probable career field: Medicine
• Pranav Vadapalli of Thornwood. Westlake High School. Probable career field: Physics
• Dylan C. Van Bramer, Valhalla High School. Probable career field: Environmental Science
• Sarah H. Grand of White Plains. The Leffell School, Hartsdale. Probable career field: Computer Programming
• Sara M. Greenberg of White Plains. The Leffell School, Hartsdale. Probable career field: Cardiology
• Benjamin S. Romm of White Plains. Frisch School, Paramus NJ. Probable career field: Aerospace Engineering