The National Merit Scholarship Corporation has announced the names of approximately 800 outstanding Black American high school seniors who have won Achievement Scholarship awards through the National Achievement Scholarship Program. Included on the list is Westerville Central High School senior Kara E. Johnson, who earned $2,500. Her probable career field is Medicine. These awards, totaling more than $2 million, are financed by grants from 30 corporate organizations and professional associations, and by National Merit Scholarship Corporation.
The National Achievement Scholarship Program is a privately financed academic competition established in 1964 specifically to honor scholastically talented Black American youth and to provide scholarships to a substantial number of the most outstanding participants in each annual competition. By the conclusion of the 2015 program, which marks the 51st annual competition, over 34,200 participants will have received scholarships for undergraduate study worth about $108 million. The program is conducted by National Merit Scholarship Corporation, a not-for-profit organization that operates without government assistance.