The National Merit® Scholarship Corporation named Daniel Choe, a senior at Battlefield High School, a 2025 National Merit Scholar. Choe emerged from a pool of over 15,000 exceptional finalists and is among the 2,500 students nationwide to receive the prestigious National Merit $2,500 scholarship.

"It is an incredible honor to have been selected as a National Merit Scholarship winner.  I worked hard for many years to be able to do well enough academically and in other ways to get this,” shared Choe. “But I am also very lucky to live in a society where all kinds of resources and opportunities are plentiful. I realize that there are so many people in other parts of the world where they have so much less of everything. I will strive to grow in the future as a global citizen who can make meaningful contributions to our communities.”

The National Merit $2,500 Scholarship winners are selected based on their outstanding combination of achievements, skills, and potential for success in rigorous college studies. A committee of college admissions officers and high school counselors evaluated the finalists' academic records, including the difficulty level of subjects studied and grades earned, scores from the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®), contributions and leadership in school and community activities, essays written by the finalists, and recommendations from high school officials.

The National Merit® Scholarship Program, established in 1955, is an annual academic competition that recognizes and awards college scholarships to high school students.