Registration for Ohio's Vax-2-School drawing to award college and career scholarships to youth who get the COVID-19 vaccine began Monday morning.
The contest is now open to Ohio residents age 12 to 25 who have received at least one dose of a vaccine. But children age 5 to 11 will be eligible once the Food and Drug Administration authorizes the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for that age group.
A deadline to enter or a schedule for drawing winners has not yet been set because of the possibility of younger Ohioans becoming eligible in the future.
Here's what you need to know.
Who is eligible for Vax-2-School?
Ohio residents age 12 to 25 who have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine can enter now.
Winners of Ohio's Vax-a-Million contest are not eligible. Also not eligible:
- youth incarcerated for a felony or in the custody of the Ohio Department of Youth Services;
- Ohio college students who maintain a permanent residence in another state;
- employees of the governor's office, Ohio Department of Health and Ohio Lottery Commission and their spouses and blood relatives.
How to enter Vax-2-School?
Entries can be submitted at ohiovax2school.com or by phone from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. by calling 1-833-4-ASK-ODH (1-833-427-5634). Children under age 18 must be registered by a parent or guardian. There's no need to enter multiple times and duplicate entries will be removed before the drawing.
Winners will be chosen by the Ohio Lottery Commission using a random number generator.
What are the prizes?
The state will give away a total of $2 million in prizes: five $100,000 scholarships and 150 $10,000 scholarships. The money will be awarded in 529 college savings plans can be used for education at community colleges, four-year institutions, graduate programs and technical and trade schools. Money from 529 accounts can be spent on a variety of costs including tuition, room and board, supplies and student loan debt repayments up to $10,000.
When will the prizes be awarded?
Prizes will be awarded over five days yet to be determined. Those dates will be announced one week in advance. Winners will be announced on the ohiovax2school.com website and on Twitter and Instagram @OhioVax2School.
The grand prize winners will be announced during an evening television broadcast. Prizes will be awarded no later than Dec. 31.
Jackie Borchardt is the bureau chief for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.
