Oregonians, if you’ve been vaccinated for COVID-19 or are planning to, you have a chance to win one of five $100,000 college scholarships. The Oregon Treasury and the Oregon College Savings Plan today announced their partnership with Governor Brown’s “Take your shot” campaign, encouraging Oregonians age 12 and older to get vaccinated with the added incentive of a chance to win a scholarship award. The state is also giving away a $1 million prize and a number of other cash prizes.
If Oregonians have received at least a first dose of the Pfizer, Moderna or Johnson & Johnson vaccines, they are automatically entered to win through the state’s vaccine database. With the help of the Oregon Lottery, the Oregon Health Authority will draw names of winners for both cash and scholarship prizes on June 28, with names being announced on July 6.
“We are excited that Treasury’s College Savings Plan can help with the effort to increase vaccination rates in Oregon,” said State Treasurer Tobias Read. “This is a win-win: get vaccinated now to protect yourself and others, and get the chance to fund your future through a scholarship that can be used for higher education and job training.”
Scholarship prize dollars will be placed in Oregon College Savings Plan accounts with the Oregon Treasury serving as the account owner, and the individual prizewinner designated as the beneficiary. Oregon College Savings Plan accounts are simple to manage and flexible. Funds can be used at most U.S. higher education institutions and many abroad, including trade school, community college, and apprenticeships.
“Managing these scholarships fits perfectly with the mission of the Oregon College Savings Plan,” said Michael Parker, Executive Director for the Oregon Treasury Savings Network. “We are committed to making higher education more accessible and affordable to communities statewide by offering year-round incentives to make it easier for Oregonians with dreams for the future to save and to save early.”
Popular Oregon College Savings Plan incentives include their Baby Grad and Kinder Grad programs, which provide a $25 match to accounts opened for a child prior to their first birthday and for Kindergartners aged 5 or 6 years old. Oregon also offers a refundable tax credit (worth up to $300) for higher education savings, allowing more families to benefit from saving for college.
For more information about the campaign and available cash prizes, please visit Governor Brown’s State of Oregon homepage.
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The Oregon College Savings Plan is a state-sponsored savings program that comes with special tax advantages and can be opened by just about anyone—parents, family, friends, even future students. The money saved in the Oregon College Savings Plan grows tax-free and can be used for qualified expenses at any accredited, post-secondary institution or trade school. To learn more and to open an account, please visit www.oregoncollegesavings.com or call 866-772-8464.
The Oregon Treasury Savings Network, part of the Oregon State Treasury, was launched in January 2001 to administer the Oregon College Savings Plan. It has since expanded to administer the Oregon ABLE Savings Plan and national ABLE for ALL Savings Plan, and the first state-run retirement program, OregonSaves.
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