Avondale High School Student Committed to Academic Success

Avondale High School Student Committed to Academic Success

Avondale High School senior Aparna Sumanth is among only 2,500 students nationally and approximately 90 graduates statewide to earn a National Merit scholarship.

In addition to the National Merit distinction, Aparna will receive a $2,500 scholarship through the National Merit Corporation.

“This award recognizes Aparna’s commitment to academic success and her focus on the achievement of her post-high school goals,” said Avondale Superintendent Dr. James Schwarz. “She is a remarkable young person with a bright future and we’re all very proud of her.”

Aparna, from Auburn Hills, Michigan, is the daughter of Sumanth Gurumurthy and Chitra Sumanth. In addition to being one of three Valedictorians for the Avondale High School Class of 2017, she is a member of the National Honor Society and the National Spanish Honor Society. In addition, she plays the flute and piccolo in the school band and swims on the Varsity swim and dive team where she has earned Scholar Athlete awards for four years, served as team captain and was named team MVP in her senior year. This year, Aparna was among the students chosen from around Southeastern Michigan to be recognized as a WXYZ Channel 7’s “Best and Brightest”. Aparna plans to study biomedical engineering while minoring in piano performance at the University of Michigan.

National Merit scholars are judged to have the strongest combination of accomplishments, skills, and potential for success in rigorous college studies. The number of scholars named in each state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the nation’s graduating high school seniors.

The scholars were selected by a committee of college admissions officers and high school counselors, who appraised a substantial amount of information submitted by both the finalists and their high schools: the academic record, including difficulty level of subjects studied and grades earned; scores from two standardized tests; contributions and leadership in school and community activities; an essay written by the finalist; and a recommendation written by a high school official.

Students initially qualify for the Merit program by being among the top one percent of students in the country taking the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test.