LEXINGTON, Ky. — Five exceptional graduates from Fayette County Public Schools have earned college-sponsored scholarships through the 2026 National Merit Scholarship Program, marking another milestone for the district's Class of 2026.

The recipients—Sayed Damaa of Frederick Douglass High, Nick Knowles of Lafayette High, and Benjamin Burch, Isabelle Cramer and Lauren Crowe of Paul Laurence Dunbar High—will receive between $500 and $2,000 annually for up to four years of undergraduate study at their chosen universities.

Damaa plans to study biochemistry at the University of Kentucky, while Knowles will pursue mechanical engineering at UK. Burch heads to the University of South Florida for medicine, Cramer will study politics as a correspondent at the University of South Carolina, and Crowe will focus on video game design at Rochester Institute of Technology.

The five scholarship recipients are among 42 National Merit Scholarship winners announced across Kentucky in this latest round of the program, which continues through July. According to Fayette County Public Schools, scholarship announcements come in four waves from April through July, recognizing corporate-sponsored awards, $2,500 National Merit scholarships, and two rounds of college-sponsored scholarships.

By mid-summer, roughly 6,700 high school graduates nationwide will have received approximately $24 million in awards. The National Merit Scholarship Corporation, businesses and colleges underwrite the awards, selecting winners based on academic skills, accomplishments and potential for success in rigorous college studies.

This latest cohort of scholarship winners continues a pattern of academic achievement in Fayette County Public Schools, where students have demonstrated sustained improvement in post-secondary readiness and college preparation over the past several years.