7 Smithtown High School Students Earn National Merit Finalist Honors

SMITHTOWN, NY — Seven students in the Smithtown Central School District have been named finalists in the prestigious 2026 National Merit Scholarship Program.

The honor places the students among the top high school scholars in the country.

The finalists include Smithtown High School West students Jacob Bergman and Ishaanth Reddy Guduru, and Smithtown High School East students Madeline McCullough, Shaayan Alam, Prateek Chilakamarthy, Saquib Syed, and Arnav Jain.

The National Merit Scholarship Program is a highly competitive academic contest that awards more than 6,900 scholarships each year, totaling nearly $26 million.

Students are evaluated based on their academic records, accomplishments, leadership, and potential for success in college.

“We are incredibly proud of our National Merit Finalists at High School East,” Smithtown High School East Principal Paul McNeil said. “These five students represent the very best of what happens when you combine an exceptional work ethic with a rigorous academic schedule.”

The process begins with the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT), taken by more than 1.3 million high school juniors nationwide each year. The exam serves as the initial screening tool to identify the country’s highest-performing students.

“The High School West community is beyond proud to celebrate Jacob and Ishaanth for being named National Merit Finalists,” said Smithtown High School West Principal William Holl. “This prestigious honor puts them among the top tier of students in the country, but beyond the test scores and accolades, we know them as individuals with exceptional character who have made an immensely positive impact on our school.”

Finalists now move on to compete for National Merit Scholarships that will be awarded later this year.