COVINGTON, Ga. — Two teenagers from Newton and Walton counties are the first recipients of the Beyond the Bar Scholarship.

The Beyond the Bar Foundation awarded the $1,000 scholarships to Hannah Bodus and Faith Reed on Wednesday.

The foundation is a collaborative effort between the New Rock Legal Society and Newton, Rockdale and Walton county bar associations to help students further their education at an accredited college or technical school.

“All of the applications were outstanding and it was a competitive field,” Cheveda McCamy, the foundation’s president, said.

The four bar associations formed the foundation earlier this year as a way for local attorneys to give back to youth in Rockdale, Newton and Walton counties.

Bodus, of Covington, is graduating from Newton High School with a 4.0 GPA and will study at Oxford College at Emory University. She has been active with track and field, basketball, National Honor Society, Beta Club, Peer to Peer tutoring and Math Team.

Faith Reed, of Social Circle, also graduates with a 4.0 GPA from Social Circle High, where she is valedictorian. Reed is heading to the University of Georgia. She has been active in marching band, swim team, student government, National Honor Society, Beta Club and is a certified nursing assistant, who volunteers at nursing homes.

“Both students had outstanding academics, extracurricular activities and worked part-time jobs,” McCamy said. “We had a committee of six veteran lawyers who reviewed the applications and we were impressed by these young ladies’ essays and commitment to public service.”