Fifteen Dane County students are among 2,500 high school seniors nationwide to win $2,500 National Merit Scholarships.

The honorees from Madison high schools include: Carl N. Anderson, Zachary S. Butler, Eva M. Golos, Suvai Gunasekaran, Benjamin D. Seeger, Pooja R. Shah, Rachel S. Wang and Connie M. Wu from Madison Memorial High School; and Runqi Song, Yin Guan, Jihae A. Lee and Hanna C. Minkoff from Madison West High School.

Andrew T. Luskin of Middleton High School, Rebecca E. Kregness of McFarland High School and Rachel Rahn of Madison, who attends Lakeside Lutheran High School in Lake Mills, were also named.

The Merit Scholars were chosen from among 15,000 finalists and judged to have the strongest combination of accomplishments, skills and potential for college success. With interests that range from medicine and engineering to elementary education, geoscience and patent law, the Dane County students may use their awards at any accredited U.S. college or university.