2 Naperville Students Named National Merit Scholars

NAPERVILLE, IL — Two Naperville students were recently chosen from among over 16,000 students nationwide to receive a corporate-sponsored 2025 National Merit Scholarship.

The 2025 National Merit Scholar from Naperville are:

• Helen Liang of Naperville Central High School
• Kavita A. Rajan of Neuqua Valley High School

Liang, who plans to study law, received a scholarship sponsored by Pfizer, Inc. Rajan, who plans to study environmental engineering, received a scholarship from McGraw Hill, LLC.

The Naperville students were one of 830 finalists who were named National Merit Scholars. Finalists were evaluated on their PSAT and National Merit Qualifying Test scores, academic records, letters of recommendations, community contributions and essay submissions.

Scholarships range from one-time payments of up to $5,000 and renewable awards of up to $10,000 annually.

When the 2025 National Merit Scholarship program comes to a close, some 6,900 finalists will have been chosen as Merit Scholars, receiving a total of close to $26 million in scholarships to attend accredited colleges and universities throughout the United States.