KU Life Section B THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
JULY 10, 1996
State lotteries: the college connection
HOPE grant uses lottery funds to pay Georgia students' tuition
By Kelsey Snow Special to the Kansan
Georgia's high school graduates are going to college free.
Thanks to the HOPE grant, students who graduate from high school with a grade point average 3.0 or higher have their tuition paid. They also receive $100 a term for books as long they maintain a 3.0 GPA.
According to Rick Dent, press secretary for Georgia Governor Zell Miller, students are taking advantage of the grant. More than 90 percent of freshmen at the University of Georgia receive the grant, he said.
Miller created the HOPE, Helping Outstanding Pupils Educationally, grant in 1993 with proceeds from the Georgia Lottery. It was created to reward hard work in the classroom, to relieve families from the financial sacrifice of college tuition, and to keep Georgia's best students in Georgia, Dent said.
He also said that when the grant began, it was available only to those whose family income was less than $66,000. Later that figure changed to $100,000, which applied to about 95 percent of Georgia families. Now there is no income limit to qualify for the grant.
"We weren't really sure what we could do at first, Dent said. "This is the first program of its kind. We've had to tinker a little, to make sure we could afford it."
The Georgia lottery has grossed approximately $1.3 billion. The 1996 budget allocates $165 million to HOPE, the fund now aids about 168,000 students.
Dent said that because Georgia was one of the last states to adopt a lottery, it had learned from the mistakes of others. He attributed the program's success to
the state's commitment to provide services determined before the creation of the lottery. He said that it eliminated politicians' pre-election promises concerning lottery proceeds and money wasted on short-term programs.
"The program is hard to replicate." Dent said. "Most states' lottery proceeds are already tied up in other things. And you can't take money away from somebody to give it to someone else."
In Georgia, for every dollar spent on a lottery ticket, 35 cents goes to the state for education, said Conmelta Gaither, a community specialist with the Georgia Lottery commission. Fifty cents goes to the winning player, 10 cents toward operating costs, and 5 cents pays commissions to retailers who sell lottery tickets.
She said that the state divided the proceeds equally between three programs: the HOPE fund, public prekindergarten classes and the upgrade of technology in public schools.
The most remarkable program is the HOPE fund.
For Oanh Huinh, University of Georgia sophomore, the HOPE fund has allowed her to attend college without accumulating thousands of dollars in student loans.
"Without the grant I would have to get loans. Otherwise I would definitely put a major financial strain on my family," Huhn said.
She said that most of her friends were receiving HOPE assistance, and those who weren't had lost it because of their grades.
"It makes you work harder for your grades," Huin said. "It gives you a
challenge, to work for something."
director of financial aid at the Georgia Institute of Technology, said that many students were not aware of the grant's significance.
"Unfortunately, many students aren't aware of how important the grant is until after their freshman year, he said. "It's their families who are ecstatic about the grant."
About 50 percent of students receiving HOPE grants at the Georgia Institute of Technology are
"I believe it has that kind of impact. It's really made a difference in Georgia," he said.
"Even for students who fall below the 3.0, there is hope. No pun intended," Dent said.
Dent said that students who lose the scholarship still have incentive to work hard.
Students can reapply for the scholarship if they raise their grades, he said.
The HOPE fund also benefits those who do not want to go to a university. Any student who simply graduates from high school can go to a technical institute free, Dent said. There also are provisions for GED recipients.
"In Georgia everyone has the opportunity to develop skills necessary to get a job. Many students are taking the technical school route," Dent said.
Also, students who pursue a teaching career can receive a forgivable loan for up to $3,000 a year. If the student teaches for one year in a Georgia public school, the loan is considered to be repaid, Dent said. Also, the HOPE fund will provide $10,000 to teachers who want to further their education.
Dent said that the scholarship program had influenced many students to stay in Georgia rather than going to an out-of-state school.
"We were being drained of our best. The HOPE fund is hard to pass up," Dent said. "Now our best students are staying home. And eventually they'll get jobs in Georgia."
According to McTier, the state has made it a tougher for future graduates to earn a 3.0 GPA. He said that in the year 2000, the required grade point average will be taken only from core classes, such as math and English.
Dent said that the lottery programs were causing educational standards to rise throughout the state's schools. And the higher standards cause a ripple effect felt in the state's economy and development.
"We're saying to students: Hey, we expect a lot from you." McTier said.
"The HOPE fund is hard for some people to believe," Dent said. "It is an amazing program."
How does the lottery in Kansas compare?
By Gwen Olson
Kansan staff writer
Every day Kansans help the state by spending their money and trying their luck on the Kansas Lottery.
In 1986 Kansas voters approved the establishment of a lottery. It was designed to provide entertainment while supporting the state's Economic Development Initiatives Fund, prison construction and juvenile detention facilities. In its first week, the lottery generated sales of more than $7 million.
In the 1995 fiscal year, the lottery earned more than $50 million to help the state with these programs. But unlike other states, the Kansas lottery is not pouring most of its money into education
The Board of Regents received more than $3 million last year, and education overall in Kansas received $9 million, which is 23 percent of the money earned by the lottery.
By comparison, the Missouri lottery allocated about $132 million to education last year, 32 percent of the money earned by its lottery.
Of each dollar spent on the Kansas lottery, 52 percent is used strictly for lottery prizes while 30 percent is transferred back to the state of Kansas.
The other money is set aside for administrative and retail
costs.
Mike Matson, press secretary for Gov. Mike Graves, said, "The idea and goal is to develop the economy and create new jobs in Kansas."
Many other states have specific programs that benefit from lottery money.
One example is Georgia, which has set up a scholarship program for students going to college.
In this program, some Georgia high school graduates with a grade point average of 3.0 or higher receive a full scholarship to any college in the state and $100 for books each term.
Students continue to receive their scholarships as long as they maintain a GPA of 3.0.
Pam Evans, a representative in the Kansas Lottery's public information department, said that Kansas does not have such a program.
"There is nothing specific like that," Evans said. "We don't decide where the money goes. Once we transfer the funds, it is up to the state legislature where they will go."
The program in Georgia has been very successful with almost 170,000 students receiving scholarships. In the past, similar programs have been proposed in the Kansas Legislature.
State Sen. Jerry Karr, a Democrat, is the senate minority leader. Bob Martin, chief of staff for Karr, said that there have been different proposals during past years to divert the funds for other uses, but that nothing has been approved.
"There is a lot of interest in a program similar to Georgia's, and I am confident that more proposals will be made this term," Martin said.
MUSIC REVIEW
Sponge soaks up influences; Reverend preaches rockabilly
Review by Andrew Dalton
Sponge Wax Eestatic (Columbia). Detroit's modern day glam rockers have one.
upped themselves with their second release, Wax Estatic. The new record shows definite improvement over Sponge's first recording, Rotting Pinata, which featured the two hits Plowed and Molly. The songs on Wax Estatic are tight and Sponge shows a high level of confidence for a band with only one hit album.
day glam rockers have one- uped themselves with this
Much of the disc sounds as if it were made by a band from across the Atlantic.
If I didn't know better, I'd swear that Sponge had joined Elastica and Oasis as part of the new British invasion. Definite Psychedelic Furs and David Bowie influences hover about this recording.
I Am Anastasia, on which former Psychedelic Fur Richard Butler performs the chorus, My Baby Said and The Death of a Drag Queen could all be Butler originals. Wax Ecstatic, the album's first single, is classic British post-punk, complete with walling guitars and fuzzed-over vocals.
Sponge's mixture of British subtleties and their own Detroit roots have enabled them to create a sound al their own. If the band continues with this impressive formula, the next album may be a classic. Overall: 8 (out of a possible 10).
Jawbox Jawbox (Tag Recording). This album reminds me of bad '80s metal. A plodding tempo, heavy, droning guitars without hooks, and poor vocals make up the required mix (minus the leather and locks).
There are only two songs on Jawbox worth listening to. The first, Iodine, is less aggressive than normal. It appears that the band actually tried to write an intelligent track, with mildly successful results.
While listening to this record I kept having horrible flashbacks to the late nights of my youth when bands like Accept scrolled across MTV.
This track's vocals are clean, unlike the pained growls found in most the record.
It would certainly make a better album to hear more songs from Jawbox like this one, and less like the choppy His Only Trade.
The other song worth anything is a hidden track on the record, but it's not even an original, just a cover of Tori Amos' *Cornflake Girl*. Overall 2.
The Reverend Horton Heat It's Martini Time (Interscope). If fast and fun rockabilly is your style of music, then The Reverend Horton Heat is for you.
Even if it's not your style, the Rev may just suck you in
with his amusing and sometimes raunchy spin on the genre.
The new album from this trio of hard-drinking rockers stays along the same lines as their previous albums. R'is
Martini Time displays the band's ability to mold the core rockabilly sound to their own high-octane style. Where original rockabilly artists crooned, the Reverend nearly screams. Of course the songs still deal primarily with women, liquor and partying, but the Rev delves into other areas such as spoken-word jaws.
with 'That's Showbiz and an accidental trip to a gay cowboy bar with 'Cowboy Love.' Overall 7.