Already ecstatic about their tuition-free university transfer scholarships as members of the All-Arizona Academic Team, Yavapai College students Austin Tosh and Anastasia Lobo recently learned they are nationally ranked academic team members and have won additional scholarship money.

Austin, a pre-engineering student, and Anastasia, a general studies student, earned first-team Coca-Cola 2023 All-Academic Team rankings, along with Gold ($1,500) and Bronze ($1,000) scholarship awards, respectively. The national scholarship awards were based on their individual rankings on the All-Arizona Academic Team which honors Arizona community college students who have demonstrated academic and leadership excellence and made valuable contributions to their colleges and communities. The Coca-Cola scholarship is sponsored by the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation and is administered by the Phi Theta Kappa international college honor society.

YC President Dr. Lisa Rhine thanked Austin and Anastasia for exemplifying the YC student experience on a national scale. “It is so gratifying when students like Austin and Anastasia find in Yavapai College the perfect place to launch their dreams – a place to learn, grow, thrive and cultivate relationships with people who know your name and work hard to lift students over the finish line. I am thrilled for both of them and for their families, and I look forward to following along as they set out on their next college, career and life adventure.“

Both Austin and Anastasia are members YC’s College Honors Program and Anastasia is active in the YC PTK chapter, the Pride and I AM YC clubs. Austin spends much of his free time serving fellow students and the community in a variety of volunteer roles.

An aspiring electrical engineer, Austin said the additional scholarship award is especially welcome because he and his wife are expecting their first child later this year. “This means a great deal to our growing little family.”

He is prepared to continue his engineering studies at Arizona State University, in large part he said, because of his student experience at YC. “I had the honor of having some of the most supportive and challenging professors. With their support and the skills they helped me develop, I've been able to land a job in the industry I am studying and I’m paving a path toward succeeding in my educational endeavors.”

Anastasia, who immigrated to the United States from Dubai in 2020, also plans to transfer to ASU to study law and policy, enroute to a law degree and a career in politics, family or labor law. The Arizona Serve/AmeriCorps intern with YC’s Justice Institute and Respect Campaign said the Coca-Cola scholarship is an affirmation of her academic achievements, which haven’t come without struggle, and a welcome source of student debt relief.

Calling her YC student experience “invaluable,” Anastasia said college faculty and staff “opened many new doors” for her. “I’ll forever be glad that I decided to leave a life of comfort to immigrate because YC has made the experience worth it.”