Carrollton High School graduates of the Class of 2023 received $9 million in scholarship offers from colleges and universities, not including the HOPE/Zell Miller scholarships, which awarded an additional $1.9 million to more than 400 graduates this year.

The majority of the awards were offered by educational institutions, but there also were private awards presented by individuals and nonprofit entities, including the Carrollton City Schools Education Foundation.

Though many students earned awards for academic success, five graduates were presented $10,000 awards from the REACH Scholarship program for their commitment to focus on academic achievement. The REACH Georgia Scholarship program promises students the support they need to graduate from high school and achieve postsecondary success. This year there are five recipients who received $10,000 scholarships to attend a Georgia college or university as a reward for successfully completing the mentoring/support program — Alison Steele, Dontavious Phillips, and Cynthia Gomez-Cruz, Ryshawn Powell and Zikera Watson.

Carrollton High School emphasizes a focus on academics, arts and athletics and has produced a mix of scholarship offers that recognize the outcome of this focus. Six students received significant scholarships for their academic excellence: E’Layiah Ackles received a full-ride to Davidson College with a scholarship amount totaling around $300,000. Kyleigh Smith is attending the University of Alabama and received a total of $151,000 in scholarship awards. A’Maya Philpot received approximately $136,000 to attend Tuskegee University. Emma Harris is attending the University of Georgia and received the Hagan Scholarship Award totaling approximately $60,000. Jocelyn Hernandez also received the Hagan Scholarship Award and will attend Auburn University this fall. Bobby Patel received approximately $114,000 from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

“These students are the top academic performers at CHS, but are also well-rounded and multi-talented students involved in many school activities,” said CHS Principal Ian Lyle. “I am excited to follow their college journey. I know they will continue to make us proud.”

CUTLINE: Carrollton High School graduate Jocelyn Hernandez received the Hagan Scholarship which is valued at approximately $60,000. Jocelyn is attending Auburn University this fall and plans to pursue a career in construction management.