Ellington High School Senior Named National Merit Semifinalist

ELLINGTON, CT — An Ellington High School senior has been named a semifinalist in the 2027 National Merit Scholarship Program.

Shriya A. Kannan was the lone Ellington student included on the list released Wednesday by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation.

More than 16,000 high school seniors nationwide were selected as semifinalists. They will compete for about 6,700 National Merit Scholarships worth a combined $24 million.

The semifinalists represent less than 1 percent of high school seniors nationwide. They qualified through their performance on the 2025 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test.

To advance, students must submit a scholarship application detailing their academic record, school and community involvement, leadership experience, employment and awards. They must also receive a recommendation from a school official, write an essay and earn an SAT or ACT score that confirms their earlier performance.

More than 15,000 semifinalists are expected to be named finalists in February. Scholarship winners will be announced between April and July 2027.