Marjory Stoneman Douglas Seniors Named College-Sponsored National Merit Scholars

by Sharon Aron Baron June 12, 2025

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Marjory Stoneman Douglas Seniors Named College-Sponsored National Merit Scholars 2

Elle Naqvi, Sean Nixon, and Aidan Tau. {BCPS}

Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School is once again in the academic spotlight after three of its seniors earned coveted College-Sponsored National Merit Scholarships, the National Merit Scholarship Corporation announced this week.

Elle Naqvi, Sean Nixon, and Aidan Tau, all bound for the University of Florida this fall, secured the prestigious awards after advancing through every stage of the rigorous National Merit competition.

“We are incredibly proud of our students who have achieved this remarkable recognition,” said BCPS Superintendent Dr. Howard Hepburn. “Their dedication to academic excellence, coupled with the unwavering support from their teachers, families, and school communities, has paved the way for these significant college scholarships.”

College-Sponsored National Merit Scholarships are financed directly by participating colleges and universities and provide between $500 and $2,000 annually for up to four years of undergraduate study. Nationwide, more than 2,900 students received the awards this cycle; additional recipients will be named in July.

Other BCPS College-Sponsored National Merit Scholars

Broward Virtual School — Vignesh Nanduri, University of Florida
College Academy at Broward College — Luis Cuetara, Brant Maloun (both University of Florida); Julianna Webster, Florida Atlantic University
Cooper City High School — Chase Blanchard, University of South Florida; Yash Patel, University of Florida
Cypress Bay High School — Ethan Dutton, Felix Jensen, Zachary Lew, Ayami Ratnayake (all University of Florida); Hem Jadav, Santiago Pinzon (both University of Central Florida); Aiden Park, University of Southern California; Daniela Castelo, University of Florida
Fort Lauderdale High School — Blanca Olweean, University of Florida
Western High School — Joshua Bernstein, Florida State University

In total, BCPS students account for 18 of the nearly 6,930 National Merit Scholars honored so far this year. Earlier releases recognized corporate-sponsored and $2,500 National Merit award winners; the July announcement will push the nationwide total of college-sponsored recipients past 3,600.

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Sharon Aron Baron

Sharon Aron Baron is a Parkland resident and editor of Talk Media. She has been covering Parkland news since 2012. Parkland Talk was created to provide News, Views, and Entertainment for the residents of Parkland.