KINGWOOD, W.Va. (WVDN) – State Treasurer Riley Moore announced Preston County student Molly Dalton as the winner of the inaugural SMART529 “Fund the Future” Sweepstakes $15,000 college savings prize.
“It’s a tremendous honor to be able to present Molly and her family with this $15,000 prize,” Treasurer Moore said. “I’m thrilled this college savings award will now be able to help her achieve her educational dreams.”
Dalton, 14, recently completed the 8th Grade at Central Preston Middle School. She said she intends to use the $15,000 prize, which will be invested in a SMART529 account, to help fund her dream of going to law school. Additionally, she plans to serve in Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) programs while she continues her education.
“I’m planning on doing JROTC in high school, then doing ROTC in college as well,” she said. “Then after that, I’m planning to be a lawyer.”
For her mother, Peggy Dalton, the $15,000 represents a great start to fund her daughter’s dreams. As a single mother, Peggy said sometimes finances can be “feast or famine,” so this prize gives her a significant foundation that will continue to grow.
“It’s really exciting,” Peggy Dalton said. “This is a good start; it allows me to add to it. That way when I’m ‘feasting’ I can add to her college fund and guarantee her a good college life, so she won’t have to work through college like some of us did.”
Fund the Future was a statewide sweepstakes to award one West Virginia child $15,000 deposited directly into a SMART529 account. To enter the sweepstakes, parents or legal guardians submitted online entry forms at www.wvtreasury.com/fundthefuture.
The eligibility requirements were:
- Entries must be completed by a parent or legal guardian.
- Child must be 17 or younger.
- Child AND parent or legal guardian must be a resident of West Virginia.
- Only one entry per eligible child permitted.
- Multiple children in a household may be entered to win.
Entries were submitted from April 10 through May 22.
SMART529, West Virginia’s college savings plan, is consistently ranked as one of the top plans in the nation by SavingForCollege.com. The tax-advantaged savings plan helps families save for eligible education expenses and can be used to cover the cost of traditional four- and two-year college expenses, accredited vocational and trade schools, as well as graduate and doctoral programs.
Over the past 22 years, the program has expanded to be more accessible for families. SMART529 accounts can be opened for as little as $1, and the Bright Babies program has helped more than 6,500 West Virginia infants receive $100 for an account opened before their first birthday.
SMART529 is a qualified tuition program issued by the Board of Trustees of the West Virginia College and Jumpstart Savings Programs and administered by Hartford Funds. Complete information about SMART529 plans and investment options is available at www.SMART529.com.
