New Mexico Considers Lottery Scholarship Changes

A college scholarship that's bankrolled by the state lottery may become merit- or needs-based.  Sen. Michael Sanchez says his long-held stance that the scholarship should be available to all New Mexican students, regardless of financial need or academic accomplishments, might have to change.

That's because a Legislative Finance Committee reported in September that the scholarship fund is projected to run out of money in the next fiscal year.

The Senator Majority Leader made his comments at a University of New Mexico student summit.

About 75,300 New Mexican students have received the scholarship since it began 16 years ago. The scholarship pays 100 percent of tuition to a public New Mexico school for eight consecutive semesters, as long as students maintain a minimum 2.5 GPA.

___

Information from: Albuquerque Journal, http://www.abqjournal.com

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.