Twenty-three Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) students from ten high schools have been named winners of 2023 Merit Scholarship awards by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC). The students are part of a group of more than 3,000 National Merit® finalists chosen to receive scholarships financed by higher education institutions. 

Winners of the scholarships, with their probable career fields in parentheses, are:

• Riley Cooper of Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology (TJHSST) (engineering), National Merit Claremont McKenna College scholarship.
• Connor Harris of TJHSST (software engineering), National Merit University of Texas at Dallas scholarship.
• Nicolas Makovnik of TJHSST (computer science), National Merit Purdue University scholarship.
• Sravya Patibandla of TJHSST (computer science), National Merit University of Maryland scholarship.
• Saloni Shah of TJHSST (computer science), National Merit University of Maryland scholarship.
• Nihar Xavier of Chantilly High School (computer engineering), National Merit University of Maryland scholarship.
• Kaia Marie Wright of TJHSST (agricultural science), National Merit Purdue University scholarship.
• James Frank Brady of Woodson High School (electrical engineering), National Merit University of Maryland scholarship.
• Jeffrey Eum of Fairfax High School (anesthesiology), National Merit Vanderbilt University scholarship.
• Everly Johnston of McLean High School (international relations), National Merit Boston College scholarship.
• Ashley Khang of Langley High School (neuroscience), National Merit University of Southern California scholarship.
• Alec Agayan of Herndon High School (computer science), National Merit University of Maryland scholarship.
• Danica Dougan of Westfield High School (bioinformatics), National Merit Carleton College scholarship.
• Ehlaina McCaskill of TJHSST (civil engineering), National Merit Purdue University scholarship.
• Jennifer Munyan of Madison High School (computer science), National Merit University of Tulsa scholarship.
• Dante Luca Valencia of TJHSST (aerospace engineering), National Merit University of Central Florida scholarship.
• Luke Wang of TJHSST (mathematics), National Merit Harvey Mudd College scholarship.
• Alan Joshua Hsu of TJHSST (electrical engineering), National Merit Purdue University scholarship.
• Holden Browne of West Springfield High School (music), National Merit Indiana University Bloomington scholarship.
• Jonathan Vu of TJHSST (computer science), National Merit University of Maryland scholarship.
• Valentina Hong of TJHSST (computer science), National Merit University of Maryland scholarship.
• Nayan Jaysankar Iyer of Madison High School (computer science), National Merit University of Maryland scholarship.
• Zachris Matthews of TJHSST (software engineering), National Merit University of Texas at Dallas scholarship.

Each scholarship winner was evaluated on his or her academic record; an essay and information about extracurricular activities, awards, and leadership positions; SAT scores that confirmed outstanding test performance; and a recommendation and endorsement from a high school official. Each award provides between $500 and $2,000 annually for up to four years of undergraduate study at the institution financing the recipient’s scholarship.

The final group of NMSC scholarship recipients from the class of 2023 will be named in July.

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