Avon High School Students Named National Merit Finalists

Avon High School’s National Merit Finalists,
Ashley Granitto and Bhavya Appana.

Avon High School boasts two (2) National Merit Scholar Finalists from the 2018 National Merit Scholarship program. The two seniors were named Semifinalists back in September and have now advanced in the competition.

National Merit Scholarship Finalists:

Bhavya Appana – parents Ramarao and Swathi Appana. Bhavya is a member of National Honor Society and Student Council, as well as the Orchestra. She is a member of the Northeast Ohio Regional Orchestra and was also selected for the OMEA All-State Orchestra. She is currently undecided on a college major. She has applied to the University of Pittsburgh and Northwestern University.

Ashley Granitto – parents Matt and Meg Granitto. Ashley is president of the Class of 2018, a member of National Honor Society and Student Council. She plans to study Computer Science in college and has applied to Case Western Reserve University and Cornell University.

The National Merit program recognizes students with high PSAT scores and a strong academic record. Approximately 1.5 million high school juniors across the country this year will compete for 7,400 scholarships — a total of $32 million. Semifinalists represent less than 1 percent of American high school seniors. Approximately 15,000 students will advance to the finalist round in February, and learn if they won in the spring.

To be considered for a Merit Scholarship award, semifinalists must fulfill several requirements to advance to the finalist level of the competition. Approximately 90 percent of the semifinalists are expected to attain finalist standing, and about half of the finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship, earning the Merit Scholar title.

Approximately 1.5 million juniors in more than 22,000 high schools entered the 2018 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of semi-finalists, representing less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the highest scoring entrants in each state. The number of semifinalists in a state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the national total of graduating seniors.