Wallingford Student Awarded National Merit Scholarship

WALLINGFORD, CT — A Wallingford resident was among the students named a winner of a National Merit Scholarship this week.

The National Merit Scholarship Corporation announced Wednesday this year’s National Merit $2,500 Scholarship winners.

The 2,500 winners were chosen from a pool of 15,000 finalists. The awards were selected based on an evaluation of their accomplishments, skills, and potential for success in college.

Peisong Li, who attends Choate Rosemary Hall in Wallingford and has a probable career field of mathematics, was named a scholarship winner.

National Merit $2,500 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, according to NMSC.

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

The 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 written by a high school official, according to NMSC.