Kansas: State Lottery for Learning

The Sunflower State legislature will renew the Kansas Lottery, which expires in 2002. The Kansas Lottery initiative has received preliminary approval for extension until June 2004.
        Why is the lottery so important? Previously the Kansas Lottery has supplied the state with $510 million dedicated to the Economic Development Initiative Fund. Approximately 47 percent of EDIF funds are earmarked for education. EDIF funds have also supported work-force-training programs. Since 1987, EDIF dollars have gone to support Kansas Tech Enterprise Corp., which has created 11,835 jobs and attracted 267 new companies.
        In 2000, the lottery generated $59.4 million about $17 million of which went to state educational institutions for research and vocational-technical programs. The state's emphasis on education has not gone without notice. The National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education issued Kansas a report card grade of B+ for higher education. Kansas was also ranked on the "best performing" list on college en-trance exams, working-age enrollment, and ability to pay for both community and four-year colleges. A recent task force concluded in its report to Gov. Bill Graves that Kansas' schools need to emphasize teaching students high-tech jobs skills.

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