Tuscaloosa Area High Schools Produce 8 National Merit Finalists

Eight students from a mix of local city, county and private schools have been selected as finalists to receive National Merit Scholarships. They are among the 234 students named statewide.

The program is conducted by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation, a nonprofit organization that operates without government assistance. More than 1.2 million United States high school students enter the National Merit Scholarship Program annually.

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Finalists were selected through a multi-step process that starts with the Preliminary SAT (PSAT), a standardized test created by the College Board that measures reading, writing and math skills.

Students also take the National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test, the National Merit component of the exam high school juniors take each October. Selection is also based on high school academic record, a recommendation from a school official and additional SAT or ACT testing. From that point, students continue through an application process and academic review.

Students selected from West Alabama are:

• Brookwood High School: Preslee P. Potts
• Tuscaloosa County High School: Bryce L. Patten
• Capitol School: Sylvia Roberts
• Central High School: Jefferson A. Morris
• Northridge High School: Aditya Gupta, Annalise M. Hammond, Ariq T. Isyraqi, Adam J. Song

The students selected, along with a high school administrator, then submit a scholarship application regarding their academic record, leadership qualities and successes inside and outside of the classroom.

The students are competing for 2,500 National Merit $2,500 Scholarships, 700 corporate-sponsored scholarships and 3,500 college-sponsored scholarships.

Alabama produces dozens of National Merit scholars each year. Winners for this year from West Alabama came from Northridge High School, Hillcrest High School and Tuscaloosa County High School.

Finalists for 2027 will be announced in February.