Shorecrest grad receives $2,500 annual scholarship from Coca-Cola

UW Bothell Library

The University of Washington Bothell has received a $100,000 scholarship grant from The Coca-Cola Foundation to increase the number of students who succeed at becoming the first in their families to graduate on time from a four-year college.

Officials believe a $2,500 annual scholarship combined with existing programs of timely academic support and engagement can make a big difference in the number of first generation students who stick with college to graduation.

The first 10 students in the UW Bothell Coca-Cola Engaged Scholars pilot program started in fall quarter and are each receiving $2,500 a year for four years.

They are: Nora Abdi, Pedro Suarez, Xie C. “Tiger” Song, Michelle Cauich, Dureti Bilal, Xuan D. Nguyen, Denisse Gonzalez, Janessa Agpaoa, Midhadu Kedir, and Shoreline resident / Shorecrest graduate Rebeka Mekonen.

"For more than 20 years, The Coca-Cola Foundation has provided scholarships to students who are the first in their families to attend college," said Lori George Billingsley, vice president, community relations, Coca-Cola North America. "We're proud of the impact these scholarships have on the lives of the recipients, and we appreciate all that the University does to support them." 

The 10 were selected from an existing program designed to help historically disadvantaged, low-income and first generation students of great promise who could benefit from additional academic support. It’s called the Academic Transition Program (ATP).

The ATP students also benefit from UW Bothell’s First Year and Pre-major Program in which they attend Discovery Core classes. These classes enrich the student experience by integrating learning across a variety of academic disciplines, improving their academic skills and supporting their sense of belonging among peers and to the University.

After the first year programs, Coca-Cola Engaged Scholars are subsequently expected to take part each year in a high-impact practice available through the UW Bothell Student Success Center, such as study abroad, undergraduate research, community-based learning, or internships.

UW Bothell is a leader in the number of first generation students it admits, 49 percent. Nationally, the number of incoming first year, first generation students is about 30 percent, according to the federal Education Department’s National Center for Education Statistics. 

UW Bothell provides access to an exceptional University of Washington education for students of tremendous potential. Offering more than 45 undergraduate and graduate degrees, options, certificates and concentrations, UW Bothell builds regional partnerships, inspires change, creates knowledge, shares discoveries and prepares students for leadership in the state of Washington and beyond.