Forsyth County Schools celebrates seven National Merit scholarship winners

Forsyth County Schools announced that seven students earned National Merit $2,500 Scholarships, a national honor that carries outsized weight because it recognizes both academic excellence and college-ready potential. Among those named were Gitanjali Nair and Ishaan Nagireddi of Alliance Academy for Innovation, Sanay Garud of Denmark High School, Nikhil K. Tan of South Forsyth High School and Anant Verma of West Forsyth High School.

The awards give those seniors more than a line on a transcript. They also bring financial help for college and reinforce Forsyth County’s reputation as a place where top students can compete well beyond the local level. In a district that serves more than 54,000 students across 42 schools, including eight high schools, the win was another sign of academic depth in a system that also serves students from 129 countries who speak 69 languages.

The timing sharpened that point. The scholarship news came during the same week the Georgia Department of Education named 316 AP Honor Schools from 110 districts for 2026, a reminder that advanced coursework remains a major part of the county’s academic pipeline. Forsyth County Schools also highlighted its AP Honor School recognition, linking classroom performance to the kind of national distinctions these seniors just earned.

The National Merit Scholarship Corporation said the 2,500 scholarship winners were chosen from more than 15,000 Finalists in the 2026 competition. By the end of the program, about 6,700 students will have won National Merit Scholarships worth roughly $24 million. Selection is based on a mix of academic record, PSAT/NMSQT scores, leadership, community involvement, an essay and recommendations from school officials, a process that rewards sustained performance more than a single test day.

For current juniors hoping to compete for National Merit money, the path is already clear: start PSAT/NMSQT preparation early, stay strong in the most challenging classes available, and keep grades high while building activities that show leadership and commitment. Counselors matter too, because the program looks beyond scores and weighs how students perform inside and outside the classroom. Alliance Academy for Innovation, which opened in August 2018 in Cumming, offers one example of how that mix of coursework, advising and student habits can produce results that reach far past county lines.

These seven scholarships added another proof point for a district where academic achievement has become part of the public identity, and where the next round of National Merit contenders is already taking shape.