Scratch for Schools gives local schools a fun way to earn extra cash

Administrators, teachers and parents won extra funds at the Idaho Lottery’s 19th annual Scratch for Schools Tuesday.

Inside ISU’s ballroom, 54 teams of three had five minutes to uncover as many scratch tickets as they could for hundreds in potential winnings.

“Over the years, this program is generated $1.2 million for classroom needs,” lottery spokesman David Workman said.

Those funds have gone on to help schools like Fort Hall Elementary.

“We’re able to buy supplies for the students and we were also able to go to Bear World that first year,” Fort Hall teacher SusAnn Proctor said, explaining that events of the sort wouldn’t be possible otherwise.

In her sixth year, Proctor has seen the competitive nature of the scratch-off and the sometimes comical injuries associated with it.

“Finger injuries, broken nails, sprained wrists,” she said with a chuckle.

It makes sense when you consider the fact that you have 300 seconds to scratch 300 tickets.

“Some schools will scratch their tickets faster than other schools, and so they’ll advance to a second round where they can win another pack of 300 tickets,” Workman explained. “At the end of the day today, two schools are going to go home having scratched 900 tickets. Best of all, they get to keep all of the winnings from those.”

Of course, you’ve got to play the game to win. And even if you aren’t one of the final two, every school ends up a winner, taking home an average of $200.

The winners from Tuesday’s event were Hawthorne Middle School with $549 and Lava Elementary took in $569. Lava’s total is the most any school in the state has won so far this year.

KIFI