The Rotary Club of Richmond Hill got a little more insight on the HOPE Scholarship, tax reform and criminal justice reform Thursday when state Senator Buddy Carter, R-Pooler, paid the club a visit.

The Rotary Club recognized Richmond Hill High School senior Alex Hollowell as the Junior Rotarian of the Month, which led Carter to explain some of the changes that have been applied to the HOPE Scholarship.

He explained the scholarship now only covers 90 percent of tuition and fees instead of 100 percent for students who graduate from high school with and keep a grade point average of 3.0-3.7. Though people may not be satisfied with 90 percent, he noted the scholarship wasn’t always awarded for all of a student’s college experience.

“When it first started, it only covered freshman and sophomore — it didn’t cover junior and senior years,” Carter said.

As the revenues from the lottery grew, he said, so did the coverage of the scholarship. But now that lottery revenues have “leveled off” in the past few years, Carter said the qualifications to be awarded the scholarship have changed.

One hundred percent coverage from the scholarship is still available, but students must graduate from high school and maintain a 3.7-4.0 grade point average throughout college. Those students, he said, are referred to as Zell Miller Scholars, in honor of former Gov. Zell Miller who started the program.

Read more in the May 12 edition of the News.