Posted on 5/19/2023

Eighteen School District of Palm Beach County students are among the elite group of winners of Corporate-Sponsored Merit Scholarships and National Merit $2,500 Scholarships in the 2023 . The winners were noted for having the strongest combination of accomplishments, skills, potential for success in rigorous college studies, and outstanding academic records. The students achieved their scholarship wins out of thousands of entrants from across the United States.

The scholarship recipients were selected based on their academic records; SAT, ACT, or Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test scores; contributions and leadership in school and community activities; essays; and recommendations by a high school official. Corporate sponsors provide National Merit Scholarships for Finalists who are children of their employees, residents of communities the company serves, or who plan to pursue college majors or careers the sponsor wishes to encourage. The majority of the Corporate-Sponsored Scholarships are renewable for up to four years of college undergraduate study and provide annual stipends that range from $1,000 to $10,000 per year. The National Merit Scholarship Corporation finances most of the single-payment $2,500 Scholarships. All of the recipients can use their awards at any regionally-accredited U.S. college or university of their choice. Congratulations to the following District students for receiving $2,500 National Merit Scholarships for 2023:

• Zachary A. Bennett – West Boca Raton Community High
• Sophia H. Burnston – A.W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts
• Angelo D. Chen – Suncoast Community High
• Jack Deng – Suncoast Community High
• Snehith R. Enjem – Suncoast Community High
• Ethan J. Faerman – West Boca Raton Community High
• Aarnav Gautam – Suncoast Community High
• Jayantha Kantamneni – A.W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts
• Mira Sayegh – Suncoast Community High
• Jonathan M. Skatoff – Suncoast Community High
• Siya Viroja – A.W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts
• Cooper A. Weisman – A.W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts
• Benjamin A. Zapson – Olympic Heights Community High

Congratulations to the following District students for receiving Corporate-Sponsored Merit Scholarships for 2023:

• Theodore B. Endrud – Jupiter Community High
• Maximilian Holliday – Forest Hill Community High
• Sean P. Mollitor – Spanish River Community High
• Atishay Narayanan – Atlantic Community High
• Claire Zhao – A.W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts

National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) is a not-for-profit organization that operates without government assistance. It was founded in 1955 specifically to conduct the National Merit Scholarship Program. The majority of scholarships offered each year are underwritten by approximately 340 independent corporate and college sponsors that share NMSC’s goals of honoring scholastically talented youth and encouraging academic excellence at all levels of education.