About 16,000 competitors, a number representing less than 1 percent of all high school seniors in the United States, have qualified for the honor.
Those who go on to the finals will compete for about 7,500 scholarships worth more than $33 million.
Commended students in the competition – those who placed in the top 5 percent – include White Plains students Mairav Aloni, Mark Bosmediano, Dominick Cardon, Rose Gebhardt, Danielle Herman, Henry Roach, Alisa Thomas and Steven Yeung.
In the National Hispanic Recognition Program, Fabio Nierhoff was named a scholar.
The National Merit Scholarship Corp., which administers the contest, was established in 1955.
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