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Oklahoma Lottery Tops $1 Billion in Education Funding
By Jeff Osienya Sep 30, 2020 IndustryAfter 15 long years of operation, the Oklahoma Lottery has finally crossed the $1 billion milestone of funding education initiatives in the state. The Oklahoma Lottery is one of the youngest lotteries in the US.The Oklahoma Lottery Commission has announced that since it’s debut in 2005, the state lottery has chipped in over $1 billion to fund public education initiatives in the state. This contribution has been going to the Oklahoma Education Lottery Trust Fund which directly benefits the state’s K-12 education, higher education, and career tech.
The impressive billion-dollar milestone coincides with the lottery’s 15th Anniversary, thus giving the Sooner State even more reason to celebrate. As one of the youngest state lotteries in the US, this is a breakthrough moment for the Oklahoma Lottery which highlights the integral role that the lottery plays in bring in additional kitty for the state at large.
Upon the announcement, Jay Finks, the current Deputy Director of the Oklahoma Lottery voiced his excitement in a statement indicating that;
Quote“When voters approved the Oklahoma Lottery in 2004, they did so with the promise of increased funding for education. Today we celebrate an accomplishment that has helped countless Oklahoma teachers and students,”
Finks is in line to take over the mantle of Executive Director of the state’s lottery come 1st November.
Drivers of the Success of the Oklahoma Lottery
Part of the reason why the Oklahoma Lottery has seen this much success is the profit relief that it received after lawmakers passed new legislation in 2017 in its favor – and the Oklahoma Lottery in turn had to pledge more dollars for funding education. The relief took effect in July the same year and the lottery switched into high gear, enjoying a consistent winning streak ever since. To date, the retail sales of scratcher games have climbed close to 200%, thereby bringing in more money for Oklahoma’s education.
Scientific Games Corporation, a world-renown provider of technology and games has also played a huge role in the triumph of the Sooner State’s lottery. Scientific Games has been powering the Oklahoma Lottery since its debut in 2005 via its robust Scientific Games Enhanced Partnership program. On top of providing fan-favorite Scratchers to the lottery, the gaming company held the hand of the Oklahoma Lottery’s team on every step of the way to successfully unveil a state instant lottery program, complete with insights, analytics, advanced logistics, and even vendor optimization.
Scientific Games is also behind the central gaming system and services of the Sooner State’s lottery which spans across a massive network of 1,900 retailers within state lines. Better yet, to offer more dedicated support to the Lottery, the gaming company also has a team of over 50 staffers operating from Oklahoma City.
Acknowledging Scientific Game’s efforts in the Oklahoma Lottery’s journey, Finks also gave a vote of thanks to the company as part of his statement as follows;
Quote“The Oklahoma Lottery recognizes Scientific Games’ partnership and commitment to helping our organization succeed. Their contribution to our business has been a major factor in our recent success and why we can celebrate hitting the $1 billion mark,”
Scientific Games Applauds the Oklahoma Lottery
On its part, Scientific games also commended the Oklahoma Lottery for its big moment through a statement from John Schulz, the company’s Senior Vice President of Instant Products. He said;
Quote"On behalf of Scientific Games, we congratulate the Oklahoma Lottery on topping $1 billion in proceeds to education at its 15th Anniversary. We commend the Lottery for its vision and commitment to maximizing profits to benefit education. It has been an honor to support its leadership and the State of Oklahoma on this journey to success."
Scientific Games Corporation, which is a US-based company, was the first gaming brand in the world to debut a secure retail instant game back in 1974, and in 2014, the company rolled out USA’s first digital instant game. Currently, Scientific Games is the top provider of interactive lotto games, mobile applications, player loyalty tiers, and a range of other interactive lotto products, services, and technology across the country.
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