ATHENS - The Georgia Lottery Corp. officially launched its 20th anniversary celebration during a special ceremony Wednesday in Athens. Gov. Nathan Deal and former Gov. Zell Miller were on hand to celebrate the milestone at the University of Georgia's Zell B. Miller Learning Center.
"The Georgia Lottery's 20-year anniversary is a milestone that all Georgians can celebrate," said Georgia Lottery President and CEO Debbie D. Alford. "The lottery-funded HOPE Scholarship and Pre-K programs have impacted Georgia's students and families tremendously in the past two decades. We remain committed to our mission of responsibly maximizing dollars for these important educational programs."
While governor, Miller led the effort to create a state lottery with profits earmarked for specific educational programs.
Other special guests and dignitaries from around the state participated in the anniversary event, including: representatives from Bright from the Start: Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning, which administers Pre-K; representatives from the Georgia Student Finance Commission, which administers HOPE; and HOPE scholars.
Since its first year, the Georgia Lottery Corp. has returned more than $14.3 billion to the state of Georgia for education. All Georgia Lottery profits go to pay for specific educational programs, including Georgia's HOPE Scholarship Program and Georgia's Pre-K Program. More than 1.6 million students have received HOPE, and more than 1.2 million 4-year-olds have attended the statewide, voluntary prekindergarten program.
Monday
July 7th, 2025
8:37AM
