Arkansas Lottery sets new record with over $129M in proceeds for scholarships in FY 2024

The Arkansas Scholarship Lottery (ASL) on Tuesday announced that, based on unaudited results, it raised a record $129,179,283 in net proceeds for fiscal year 2024, which ended on June 30th. The previous record for net proceeds was in fiscal year 2023, with $113 million raised. Since its inception in 2009, ASL has raised more than $1.4 billion for scholarship funding.

Fiscal year 2024 was also the second-highest financial year in sales at $612,959,721. Fiscal year 2021 is the highest sales year to date at $631.9 million.

“We are committed to providing quality entertainment while remaining dedicated to our primary goal of supporting Arkansas students in their pursuit of higher education,” said Sharon Strong, ASL Executive Director. “We believe that our mission will continue to contribute to the long-term economic growth and prosperity of our state.”

Lottery proceeds help fund four scholarships awarded by the Arkansas Department of Higher Education:

• The Arkansas Academic Challenge Scholarship provides tuition assistance for Arkansans at two- and four-year public and private colleges.
• The Arkansas Workforce Challenge Scholarship is available for students applying for certificate programs in high-demand occupations.
• The Arkansas Concurrent Challenge Scholarship provides financial assistance to eligible students in the state who want to take college courses while still in high school.
• The Arkansas Challenge Plus Scholarship provides additional funding for students with an Academic Challenge Scholarship based on their financial needs. Challenge Plus will start accepting students this upcoming fall.

Arkansas Lottery players and retailers also won during the fiscal year 2024. Players earned $419,987,383 in prizes, with seven players winning a million dollars or more. These sales generated approximately $34,544,207 in retailer commissions.

Executive Director Sharon Strong commended the ASL staff for their hard work, contributing to the record year.

“Under the leadership of Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders and the Department of Finance and Administration, our dedicated team of professionals worked diligently this year to achieve a record-breaking year in net proceeds,” she said. “We will continue to operate as efficiently as possible and maximize every opportunity to enhance revenues responsibly.”