Johnson awarded Coca-Cola scholarship at Co-Lin Natchez

By Special to The Democrat | The Natchez Democrat

Published Sunday, September 28, 2008

WESSON — Caitlyn Johnson of Natchez, a sophomore at Copiah-Lincoln Community College’s Wesson Campus, has been awarded a $1,000 scholarship from the Coca-Cola Scholars foundation. Through the Coca-Cola Two-Year Colleges Scholarship Program, the Foundation awards a total of 400 scholarships annually to students attending higher-education institutions granting two-year degrees. All recipients have demonstrated academic success and participated in community service within the past 12 months.

“The Coca-Cola Two-Year Colleges Scholarship Program is an extension of our long-standing commitment to college education throughout the United States,” said J. Mark Davis, president of the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation. “This scholarship honors students who often balance responsibilities of school, work and family, but also find time to give back to their communities through volunteer service.”

Johnson is the vice president for service for the Eta Omega Chapter of Phi Theta Kappa. She is a member of the Trailblazers, Baptist Student Union, Alpha Omega Science Club, and the Diamond Dolls. Johnson was a homecoming maid her freshman and sophomore years. She plans to attend Mississippi State University and major in pre-med.

Johnson is the daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Alton Johnson of Natchez.

The Coca-Cola Two-Year Colleges Scholarship Program is made possible with funding from the Joseph B. Whitehead Foundation. The Whitehead Foundation provides grants in support of human services initiatives. The late Joseph B. Whitehead was one of the original bottlers of Coca-Cola.

The Two-Year Colleges Scholarship Program complements the Foundation’s Coca-Cola Scholars Program, which awards more than $3 million annually in college scholarships to 250 outstanding high school seniors. The Coca-Cola Scholars Program is one of the most recognized and respected corporate-sponsored scholarships in America.

The Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation is supported by the financial commitment of Jackson Coca-Cola Bottling Company and The Coca-Cola Company. The foundation was created in 1986 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Coca-Cola and to establish a legacy for the education of tomorrow’s leaders. Now in its ninth year of funding the Coca-Cola Two-Year Colleges Scholarship Program, the foundation has provided $3.7 million in scholarship awards to students attending two-year degree granting institutions and more than $35 million toward the Coca-Cola Scholars Program during the past 20 years.