Amayah Smith, a senior at A.H. Parker High School, is among a select few to advance from the first phase of the prestigious Coca-Cola Scholars Program.
Only 1,227 scholars out of more than 113,000 applicants reached the second phase of the program. Smith is also one of only 23 scholars from Alabama to make it to the next round.
The scholarship panel will narrow the group down to 250 finalists by January 2027. Those finalists will proceed to the interview round, from which 150 Coca-Cola Scholars will emerge in February. These scholars will each receive a $20,000 scholarship and will be honored at the 2027 Scholars Banquet on April 15 in Atlanta, Georgia.
A joint effort of Coca-Cola bottlers across the country and The Coca-Cola Company, the Coca-Cola Scholars Program is the largest corporate-sponsored, achievement-based scholarship program in the United States. With the addition of the 2027 class, the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation will have provided more than 7,300 Coke Scholars nationwide with more than $93 million in scholarships over the course of 39 years.