Highland Park, Highwood Students Awarded Merit Scholarships

HIGHLAND PARK, IL — A Highwood resident and graduating seniors from Highland Park and Deerfield high school were among the latest group of about 3,500 National Merit scholars announced by the Evanston-based National Merit Scholarship Corporation Wednesday. The winners were selected from among 15,000 finalists who met academic and other requirements by college admissions officials to receive college-sponsored scholarships. The students will receive between $500 and $2,000 annually to cover up to four years of undergraduate study.

Highwood resident Maelee I. Chen, who studied at the Illinois Math and Science Academy in Aurora and has a probable career field in biology, was awarded a National Merit scholarship to Boston University. Highland Park resident and HPHS grad Mark R. Overby was awarded a scholarship to Northwestern University and has a probable career field in business administration, according to National Merit. And Caedon J. Hsieh, of Deerfield, is interested in pursuing a career in computer science and was also awarded a scholarship to Northwestern.

Students were evaluated on their academic record, including how difficult their classes were, standardized test scores, extracurricular contributions, an essay and a recommendation from a high school official.

The National Merit Scholarship Corporation is a nonprofit founded in 1955. A majority of the $31 million in college scholarships it distributes are underwritten by sponsors – about 178 colleges and 232 corporations.

Last month, the organization awarded $2,500 single-payment scholarships to four Highland Park residents. The month prior, the organization named over 1,000 winners of its corporate sponsored awards. A final group of scholarships will be announced in July for a total of 4,000 for the year, according to the organization.

For more local stories, subscribe to Patch to receive daily newsletters and breaking news alerts or download the iPhone or Android app.