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Research ArticleArticles

Taking a Chance on College

Is the Tennessee Education Lottery Scholarship Program a Winner?

Amanda Pallais
Journal of Human Resources, January 2009, 44 (1) 199-222; DOI: https://doi.org/10.3368/jhr.44.1.199
Amanda Pallais
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Abstract

Most policies seeking to improve high school achievement historically either provided incentives for educators or punished students. Since 1991, however, over a dozen states, comprising approximately a quarter of the nation’s high school seniors, have implemented broad-based merit scholarship programs that reward students for their high school achievement with college financial aid. This paper analyzes one of these initiatives, the Tennessee Education Lottery Scholarships, using individual-level data from the ACT exams. The program did not achieve one of its stated goals, inducing more students to prefer to stay in Tennessee for college, but it did induce large increases in performance on the ACT. Policies that reward students for performance do affect behavior and may be an effective way to improve high school achievement.

  • Received November 2006.
  • Accepted October 2007.

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Journal of Human Resources
Vol. 44, Issue 1
1 Jan 2009
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Taking a Chance on College
Amanda Pallais
Journal of Human Resources Jan 2009, 44 (1) 199-222; DOI: 10.3368/jhr.44.1.199

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Taking a Chance on College
Amanda Pallais
Journal of Human Resources Jan 2009, 44 (1) 199-222; DOI: 10.3368/jhr.44.1.199
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