Changes in the S.C. K-12 grading scale have made it easier for high school students to qualify for college scholarships – and more difficult for the S.C. lottery to pay for them.

S.C. college scholarships are funded by the state lottery system, which has faced declining revenue in recent years. To fill the gap in scholarship funding, the state dips into its general fund (comprised of the state’s sales + income taxes), costing over $460 million in just 6 years.

The state school system moving to a 10-point scale (A = 90-100, previously 93-100) means an additional 6,000+ students would meet the requirements for the Life and Palmetto Scholarship ($6-10,000 per year, per A student) or the $5,000-a-year Life Scholarship ($5,000 per year, per B student), totaling $14.5 million.

The S.C. lottery is putting more dollars behind ads; asking for $226,000 for online + cable advertising to increase ticket sales to help meet rising scholarship numbers. In 2018, they’ll introduce “Gigantics,” a new $10 scratch-off ticket game for more sales.

4 min read / The State