BRIDGEWATER – Hector Montes, principal of Somerset County Vocational & Technical High School, announced today that Vaanya Salwan of Bridgewater and Chaitanyaa Vyas of Hillsborough have been named Semifinalists in the 2025 National Merit® Scholarship Program. In addition, Max Chen of Hillsborough, Manu Datta of Hillsborough, Sreelakshmi Isukapalli of Green Brook, Chahel Kumar of Somerset, Raaida Naser of Somerset, Vaishvik Vidavalapati of Somerset, and Gagan Voonna of Somerset have been named Commended Students in the 2024 National Merit Scholarship Program.
Ms. Salwan and Ms. Vyas are among the highest scoring entrants in New Jersey based on their performance on the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT). They join more than 16,000 Semifinalists, out of over 1.3 million total entrants, who are selected nationally to move on to the final round of the program. Finalists will be selected in February 2025, and will be eligible for further recognition, including scholarships.
The SCVTHS Commended students are among 34,000 students throughout the nation who are being recognized for their exceptional academic promise. Although they will not continue in the 2025 competition for National Merit Scholarship awards, Commended Students placed among the top 50,000 students who entered the competition by taking the PSAT/NMSQT.
“These students represent a valuable national resource” commented a spokesperson for NMSC. “Recognizing their accomplishments, as well as the key role their schools play in their academic development, is vital to the advancement of educational excellence in our nation. We hope that this recognition will help broaden their educational opportunities and encourage them as they continue their pursuit of academic success.”
