Twenty-four Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) students have won $2,500 National Merit Scholarships after meeting rigorous academic standards and other criteria.

The local scholars account for almost 45 percent of the 54 winners from Maryland. Nationally, 2,500 winners were chosen from among finalists in the 2006-2007 program, sponsored by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC).

NMSC finances most of the NMSC $1,500 scholarships with its own funds. Companies and businesses that sponsor awards through NMSC also help underwrite the scholarships with grants.

The announcement brings the number of Merit scholars from MCPS to 33, including nine winners of corporate-sponsored awards announced earlier. College-sponsored Merit awards will be announced on May 23 and in mid-July.

Listed by school, the latest MCPS winners and their intended career fields are:

Bethesda-Chevy Chase HS: Eli B. Hager, writing; Joseph D. Hiatt, mathematics; Thomas J. Kramer, undecided

Montgomery Blair HS: Andrew T. Durnford, computer science; David B. Gootenberg, medicine/research; Jeffrey Y. Guo, linguistics; Brian R. Lawrence, mathematics; Richard M. McCutchen, computer science; Yi An Sun, finance; Rebecca A. Vogel, ecology

Winston Churchill HS: Rebecca M. Fradkin, writing; Allen Yang, economics

Walter Johnson HS: Scott I. Golden, law (underwritten by the UPS Foundation)

Richard Montgomery HS: Joan M. Pulupa, engineering; Neena R. Satija, medicine; Zachary P. Tracer, undecided

Northwest HS: Matthew D. Romney, mathematics

Quince Orchard HS: Reagan T. Lynch, chemical engineering

Walt Whitman HS: Brian D. Dellon, computer programming; Sarah E. Grant, engineering; Karen C. Orrick, pediatric medicine

Thomas S. Wootton HS: Andrew L. Chang, medicine; Thomas J. Bolek, medicine; Mindy B. Lin, law

The winners are finalists in each state judged to have the strongest combination of accomplishments, skills, and potential for success in rigorous college studies.