5 From Nashville Awarded National Merit Scholarships

NASHVILLE, TN — Five Nashville residents were among the 900 additional winners of National Merit Scholarships financed by colleges and universities announced Monday.

These Merit Scholar designees join over 3,200 other college-sponsored award recipients who were
announced in June. Officials of each sponsor college selected their scholarship winners from among
the finalists in the National Merit Scholarship Program who will attend their institution. College-sponsored awards provide between $500 and $2,000 annually for up to four years of undergraduate study at the institution financing the scholarship. (For more updates on this story and free news alerts for your neighborhood, sign up for your local Middle Tennessee Patch morning newsletter.)

This final group of winners brings the number of 2017 National Merit Scholars to more than 7,500. These distinguished high school graduates will receive scholarships for undergraduate study worth a total of over $32 million.

The local winners are:

• Shira Hao, Hume-Fogg Academic High School. Attending Vanderbilt University to study biomedical engineering.
• Grace A. Holladay, Harpeth Hall School. Attending Washington And Lee University to study medicine.
• Olivia C. Shephard, Harpeth Hall School. Attending Auburn University to study software engineering.
• Elizabeth Singleton, Harpeth Hall School. Attending University of Southern California to study surgical medicine.
• Claire R. Smith Harpeth Hall School. Attending Washington And Lee University to study international relations.

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