ADVISORY/California Lottery Presents $1,000 To San Diego Unified School District

Business Wire, March 15, 2001

News/Assignment Editors

ADVISORY...for Friday (March 16)

SACRAMENTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 15, 2001

California Lottery District Manager, Charlie Rich, will present a check for $1,000 to the Taft Middle School tomorrow at 9:30 a.m. in the front of the school located at 9191 Gramercy Drive in San Diego. The check presentation will be made to Barbara Balsen, principal of Taft Middle School. A representative from GTECH Corporation will be on hand to participate in the presentation, as will various legislative representatives.

The funds for this donation came from recycling of old game playslips and point-of-sale materials and will be used for whatever purpose is determined by Taft Middle School. Checks will also be presented to the principals of schools near the California Lottery's other eight district offices. "We are so excited to not only be able to contribute 34% of each dollar we take in to California's schools, but also to donate this money to a school near the Lottery's San Diego office," commented Joan Wilson, director of the California Lottery.

The California Lottery is working in partnership with GTECH Corporation in this check presentation effort. GTECH, the world's largest provider of Lottery on-line gaming services, has a corporate history of outreach programs to local schools in the states that they service. GTECH has its nationwide "After School Agenda" program which is designed to close the "digital divide." The company provides a full digital lab for its selected school. "We are pleased to be a part of the solution for our state's public schools," said Dan McKenzey, account general manager for the GTECH Corporation.

San Diego Lottery staff worked with the affected school district to select the recipient school. Each school determines how the funding will be used at their site.

The Lottery, of course, is mandated to raise supplemental funding for California's public school systems, K-12 through higher education. Since sales began in 1985, the Lottery has raised over $12 billion for public education. The San Diego Unified School District received nearly $16.8 million in Lottery funds in the last school year and Lottery hopes to exceed that total when all of the transfers for the current fiscal year.

The California Lottery has a real commitment beyond its constitutional mandate to raise funds for California's public schools. Each year, it supports statewide competitions, which recognize excellence in student academics, teacher performance or program design. Currently, the agency is actively involved in the California Academic Decathlon competition and the California Teachers of the Year program.

Note to Editors: Photo Available