Some seniors still working for HOPE

ATLANTA - For most high school seniors, spring is a time for the prom, parties and traditional end-of-school slacking. <br> <br> But in Georgia, where the lottery-funded HOPE scholarship program offers B students free tuition at state colleges, more seniors are working all the way until graduation because one bad grade could cost them thousands of dollars. <br> <br> They&#39;re skipping Senior Skip Day and spending more time in the library than at the lake. And instead of taking band, drama and extra P.E. classes, seniors with a C+ or B- average are in calculus and advanced English. <br> <br> Electives don&#39;t help students earn the scholarship and good grades in tough classes can give their grade-point average a bigger boost. <br> <br> Caroline Griggs, a senior at Greenbrier High School in Columbia County, added two advanced-placement classes to her already packed schedule in an effort to boost her grade-point average. <br> <br> She plans to attend Georgia College and State University in Milledgeville. <br> <br> Senior spring is the last chance for Griggs and thousands of other high school seniors to make sure they qualify for HOPE, Helping Outstanding Pupils Educationally. Students need grade-point averages in core classes of three-point-zero. Advanced classes help more because they are graded on a five-point scale, meaning an A in an advanced class is worth 20 percent more than an A in a regular course. <br> <br> The scholarship pays for tuition, fees and offers a book allowance at state colleges. It also pays up to three thousand dollars for students attending private colleges in the state and pays tuition and fees for students at technical schools, regardless of their grades. <br> <br> So far, more than 600,000 students have saved more than $1.5 billion from the program, which is funded by the state lottery.

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