Nevada College Savings Day contest begins; offers financial reward to 12 students

A contest designed to give financial rewards to 12 Nevada students is now underway. The Nevada College Savings Board and State Treasurer Kate Marshall have launched the fifth annual Nevada $529 College Savings Day Contest, open to students from kindergarten through the fifth grade.

Winners are selected through a random drawing. To download an entry form go here. Here is a news release from the State Treasurer's Office explaining the details of the contest:

Nevada $529 College Savings Day Contest Provides Financial Reward to Students

12 students statewide will be selected for prize of $529

Carson City — State Treasurer Kate Marshall announced today that her office and the Nevada College Savings Board is sponsoring the fifth annual Nevada $529 College Savings Day Contest, which is open to all Nevada Kindergarten through 5th grade students. Twelve students will receive a prize of a $529 gift to be used to open an SSgA Upromise 529 Plan (the “Plan”) college savings plan account, or to enhance an existing Nevada College Savings Plan account. Five students from Clark County, three from Washoe County, and two each from northern rural Nevada and southern rural Nevada will be selected via random drawing.

“As State Treasurer, one of my highest priorities as administrator of the Nevada College Savings Plans Program is to provide Nevada children with an enhanced ability to afford a college education,” Marshall said. “Research shows that children with a college savings account are up to seven times more likely to attend college than those without an account, no matter how much funding is in the account. This fun contest is meant to begin a discussion in families about the need to plan ahead, as well as provide twelve lucky recipients with a head start for college savings.”

The theme of the contest is “I want to go to college so I can become a___________.” Those who enter the contest have the choice of completing the sentence and either submitting a drawing of the career choice in the box included on the Official Entry Form (attached), or submitting an essay of no more than 50 words about the student’s career ambition.

Students wishing to enter the contest can obtain an Official Entry Form at https://NevadaTreasurer.gov to download an entry form. All entries must be received by the State Treasurer’s Office by no later than April 22, 2013. The winners will be selected via a random drawing on April 25. No taxpayer dollars are used to fund the contest; all prizes come from program manager fees paid to the Nevada College Savings Plans Program.

For more information about the Nevada $529 College Savings Day Contest, about saving for college, or to find out how to open a college savings plan account, go to https://NevadaTreasurer.gov and click on the College Savings Plan link in the top navigation bar.