Targeted Merit Aid: Implications of the Tennessee Education Lottery Scholarship Program

Abstract

NASFAA JOURNAL OF STUDENT FINANCIAL AID As the nation’s newest broad-based merit aid program, the Tennessee Education Lottery Scholarship program’s generous eligibility requirements may target the very students who are disproportionately left out of similar programs in other states. This article compares the scholarship eligibility rates of Tennessee students with three other states: Florida, Louisiana, and West Virginia. This study suggests that Tennessee’s model may mitigate recent criticisms of merit aid programs and may compel policymakers to consider more fully the negative consequences of traditional merit aid.