12 GCS Students Selected as 2027 National Merit Semifinalists 

Twelve Guilford County Schools (GCS) students from four schools have earned semifinalist recognition in the 2027 National Merit Scholarship program. This puts them among more than 16,000 nationally who will have the opportunity this spring to continue in the competition for roughly 6,700 scholarships worth nearly $24 million.  

The GCS semifinalists by school are:   

Early College at Guilford 

• Teja Chitta 
• Inaya Ejaz 
• Princess Piamah-Assin 
• Anjali Pisharody 
• Caroline Rowe 
• Joel Sekyema 
• Alexander Wang 

Grimsley High 

• Georgette Beaumont 
• Asher Ermentrout 

Page High 

• Daxton Barber 
• Berkley Willis 

STEM Early College at N.C. A&T 

• Krishna Kammanadiminti 

The recognition reflects the students’ academic achievement, dedication and preparation throughout high school. 

More than 1.2 million juniors in about 20,000 high schools entered the 2027 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2025 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying 

Test (PSAT/NMSQT®). The test served as an initial screening of program entrants. The nationwide pool of semifinalists, representing less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the highest-scoring entrants in each state. The number of semifinalists in a state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the national total of graduating seniors. 

To become a finalist, the semifinalist, with the support of a high school official, must submit a detailed scholarship application. They must provide information about their academic record, participation in school and community activities, demonstrated leadership abilities, employment, and honors and awards received. A semifinalist must have an outstanding academic record throughout high school, be endorsed and recommended by a high school official, write an essay, and earn SAT® or ACT® scores that confirm the student’s earlier performance on the qualifying test. 

More than 15,000 semifinalists are expected to advance to the Finalist level and will be notified in February. All National Merit Scholarship winners will be selected from this group of finalists. Merit Scholar designees are selected on the basis of their skills, accomplishments, and potential for success in rigorous college studies, without regard to gender, race, ethnic origin, or religious preference.