Senior named 2024 Coca-Cola Scholar
March 5, 2024
According to the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation, “less than 1/6th of 1% of applicants were chosen to receive this extremely competitive award. These 150 students, who were selected from an initial pool of 103,800+ applications from across the country, not only exemplify superior leadership, service, and academics, they are change agents, positively affecting others in their communities.”
Isaac is one of only two in the Pittsburgh area and seven in Pennsylvania to be selected as a 2024 Coca-Cola Scholar.
“I was very honored -- but very nervous -- that Isaac asked me to write the single letter of recommendation he was allowed to send to move from Semifinalist to the next level,” Mrs. Patricia Palazzolo, retired Upper St. Clair High School teacher, said. “Upper St. Clair has had students named Semifinalists, but I believe Isaac is the first we have ever had to be named a Scholar.”
The Coca-Cola Scholars process began last fall. In October 2023, Isaac was notified of his Semifinalist status. At that time, he was one of only 12 in Allegheny County and 84 in Pennsylvania to earn that honor. Nationally, less than two percent of all applicants were selected as Semifinalists. Isaac was then named a Regional Finalist in January 2024. He was one of only three in the Pittsburgh area, 15 in Pennsylvania and 250 in the nation to move to the next round of the selection process.
In 2023, Isaac was selected as an 18 Under Eighteen honoree by the Junior Achievement of Western Pennsylvania for his efforts to support the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank. Visit his website platesforpitt.org for the latest on those efforts. As a 2023 High School Diplomat, he participated in a 10-day cultural enrichment experience in Japan last summer. Isaac has served as a peer tutor throughout high school and is an accomplished percussionist. In addition, he is a member of National Honor Society and the World Affairs Club.
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 2024 class, the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation will have provided more than 6,900 Coke Scholars nationwide with over $84 million in scholarships over the course of 36 years.
The full list of 2024 Coca-Cola Scholars is available online at www.coca-colascholars.org.