Academics

The Coca-Cola Foundation Awards $1 Million to OU for Scholarships

The Coca-Cola Foundation LogoThe Coca-Cola Foundation — the global philanthropic arm of The Coca-Cola Company — has awarded a $1 million grant to Oglethorpe University to establish the Coca-Cola Oglethorpe Scholars program.

The foundation recently announced grants to seventeen colleges and universities totaling $5 million as part of The Coca-Cola First Generation College Scholarship Program. Oglethorpe will award its first Coca-Cola scholarships during its annual competitive scholarship competition in January 2013.

“Oglethorpe has a longstanding tradition of providing a high-quality, hands-on liberal arts education to first-generation college students. In fact, nearly 35 percent of our students are first-generation, a rarity among the nation’s top liberal arts colleges,” said Dr. Lawrence Schall, president of Oglethorpe University.

“We are extremely grateful for Coca-Cola’s recognition of our service to these students and to the city of Atlanta through this very generous grant. Our new Coca-Cola Oglethorpe Scholars program will help 100 first-generation students learn to make a life, make a living, and make a difference.”

For nearly 100 years, the Coca-Cola Company and Oglethorpe University have shared strong ties to one another and to the city of Atlanta. The very first Coca-Cola bottler, John Thomas Lupton, was a great Oglethorpe benefactor for whom one of our signature buildings is named.

Throughout the years, numerous Coca-Cola executives have served on Oglethorpe’s board of trustees, including current Oglethorpe board chairman Norm Findley, retired Executive Vice President for Coca-Cola Enterprises, and board member Ceree Eberly, Chief People Officer for the Coca-Cola Company. Coca-Cola CEO Muhtar Kent was awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Oglethorpe in 2008.

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