Nicole Morales: Georgia Path2College 529 annual sweepstakes

A Northside senior received a donation to her college savings and an investment into her next steps of life Tuesday afternoon.

18-year-old Nicole Morales was one of 8 winners of the Path2College annual sweepstakes. Chosen at random, winners receive a check from the government agency as a donation to their Path2College 529 account. Morales was awarded $1,529.

State Treasurer Lynne Riley and Path2College executive director Mitch Seabaugh traveled to Middle Georgia to present the check and congratulate the Morales Family.

Morales says she had no idea she’d won the money, as she was not the person who applied for it. Nicole’s mother, Catie, says she applied for the sweepstakes a while ago and actually forgot about it. Seabaugh says people often forget about applying to the sweepstakes because they sometimes think it’s a scam.

According to Seabaugh, the sweepstakes is held statewide and is absolutely free. Path2College is administered by that state of Georgia, acting by and through the board of directors of the Georgia Higher Education Savings Plan. This allows parents to begin a savings account for their children as young as newborns.

Each year, the program hosts sweepstakes of all kinds to promote awareness of the service and provide assistance to families across the state.

An outfielder for the Lady Eagles, Morales says she will visit Andrew College for softball and will pursue a degree in psychology. With that, she aspires to be a psychopathologist studying mental illnesses. She would transfer to Ohio State University after. She described the donation as a blessing and says it would greatly help her throughout her college career.

According to the website, the Path2College 529 Plan is a state-sponsored, tax-advantaged 529 college savings plan that’s helping families and individuals plan for the cost of education. Available to everyone, it’s a fairly simple process. Anyone can open an account and anyone (grandparents, aunts, uncles…etc.) can donate. Accounts are also open to those looking to pursue post-secondary education out of state as well.

Interested parties can visit path2college529.com for more information on future sweepstakes and to open savings accounts for their children.