Naperville high school seniors were recognized this week as U.S. Presidential Scholars and as recipients of National Merit scholarships.
Yina Wang and Maxwell Neri, both of Naperville, were selected for the 59th class of U.S. Presidential Scholars, which honors 161 high school seniors for their accomplishments in academics, the arts, and career and technical education fields.
Only three students from Illinois were named Presidential Scholars.
Wang, who attends the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy in Aurora, was chosen for academics.
Neri attends Waubonsie Valley High School and was selected as a scholar in career and technical education.
Both are Naperville residents.
“U.S. Presidential Scholars have always represented the future of our country and the bright promise it holds,” U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona said in a news release. “I want each of these remarkable students to know: your passion and intellect, pursuit of excellence, and spirit of service are exactly what our country needs.”
A dozen Naperville-area high school seniors are receiving $2,500 scholarships from the National Merit Scholarship Corp.
The students were chosen from more than 15,000 finalists in the 2023 National Merit Scholarship Program, judged on their academic record, the difficulty level of subjects studied, grades earned, scores from the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test, contributions and leadership in school and community activities, an essay written by the finalist; and a written recommendation from a high school official.
The scholarship recipients are:
Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy: Daniel Ma, of Naperville, who plans to study quantitative analysis; and Yina Wang, of Naperville, who plans to study applied mathematics.
Naperville Central High School: Vasunandan Dar, of Lisle, who plans to study computer engineering; Helena Ilic, of Naperville, who plans to study computer science; Patrick Kulaga, of Naperville who plans to study biomedical engineering; and Jerry Luo, of Naperville, who plans to study computer science.
Naperville North High School: Evelyn Wang, of Lisle, who plans to study economics; Shan Gupta, of Naperville, who plans to study applied mathematics; and Mohammad Khan, of Naperville, who plans to study economics.
Neuqua Valley High School: Anika Prasad, of Naperville, who plans to study finance; and Derek Sisbarro, of Naperville, who plans to study biomedical engineering.
Waubonsie Valley High School: Jonah Elias, of Naperville, who plans to study mechanical engineering (robotics).
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