Avon Grad Earns Major National Scholarship

AVON, CT — The National Merit Scholarship Corp. has announced more than 2,500 winners of college-sponsored National Merit Scholarships as part of the 2026 National Merit Scholarship Program, including a winner from Avon.

Earning a National Merit Scholarship is Avon resident Lidia Kapylova, who graduated from Avon High School last week.

She will attend the University of Texas at Dallas, where she plans to study engineering.

The scholarships are financed by colleges and universities across the country and awarded to National Merit Finalists who plan to attend participating institutions.

The awards provide between $500 and $2,000 annually for up to four years of undergraduate study at the sponsoring college or university.

Officials said an additional group of recipients will be announced in July, bringing the total number of college-sponsored Merit Scholarship winners in the 2026 competition to approximately 3,500.

According to the National Merit Scholarship Corp., 138 colleges and universities are sponsoring awards this year, including 69 public and 69 private institutions located in 42 states and the District of Columbia.

The latest announcement marks the third round of scholarship awards released by the organization this year.

Recipients of corporate-sponsored Merit Scholarships were announced April 22, while winners of National Merit $2,500 Scholarships were announced May 13.

By the conclusion of the 2026 competition, about 6,700 high school seniors are expected to receive National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $24 million.

The National Merit Scholarship Corp., a nonprofit organization founded in 1955, administers the National Merit Scholarship Program without government funding.