Thursday
New Mexico’s 2018 National Merit Scholarship winners were recently announced, and three seniors from Los Alamos High School were among 15 high school students in the state to be chosen for the prestigious $2,500 scholarship. The winners and their probable career fields are as follows: Matilde Jacobson, microbiology/immunology at University of New Mexico Phillip I. Martin, earth science at Cornell University Benjamin W. Rees, medicine at University of North Carolina According to the National Merit Scholarship Corporation, the winners in each state are those judged to have the strongest combination of accomplishments, skills and potential for success in rigorous college studies. The 15 New Mexico winners are among 2,500 national selectees picked from a national pool of more than 15,000 finalists in the program. A committee of college admissions officers and high school counselors evaluated a substantial amount of information submitted by the students and their schools, including a written essay, a letter of recommendation, test scores, academic records, and contributions and leadership in school and community activities