Clark County students qualifying in droves, officials say

Monday, Feb. 28, 2000 | 10:40 a.m.

Education officials say Clark County high school seniors are qualifying for the new Millennium Scholarships in droves, with the $10,000 awards expected to keep some of the state's brightest students at home.

Some 3,200 students already have the grades and proficiency test scores it will take to cash in on an offer of up to $10,000 in financial aid at Nevada's publicly-funded community colleges and universities. Hundreds more in the Clark County School District's class of 2000 are likely to become eligible after June graduations, if they pass the state-mandated proficiency test and maintain a 3.0 grade point average or better.

The $10,000 grants - funded by the state's share of a multibillion-dollar national settlement with U.S. tobacco companies over smoking-related health-care costs - are designed to cover the tuition and fees students would normally pay in Nevada to earn a bachelor's degree.

"When the dust settles, we'll have 3,500 minimum," said Jane Kadoich, who oversees the school district's guidance and counseling programs. "We may go over 4,000. We're thrilled with our numbers."

Clark County's 11,000 high school seniors are the first to benefit from a program aimed at boosting college attendance in the state and giving Nevada universities an edge in competing with out-of-state schools for Nevada's brightest students.

"There's definitely an advantage to being in the class of 2000," said Tanyiel Nash, a 17-year-old about to graduate from Valley High School. "I didn't really think college was an option for me until this happened."

Nash, who has a 3.9 grade point average and is in Valley's specialized tourism magnet program, said she will be the first in her family to go to college.