Students were awarded a total of $40,000 in scholarships at Keeneland’s Fall 2023 College Scholarship Day.
Ten $2,000 scholarships and two $10,000 scholarships were raffled off to students on Friday, Oct. 13.
Admission for students to College Scholarship Day is free when registering with a university email and are automatically entered in the raffle by scanning their student ticket upon arrival, according to Keeneland’s website.
Keeneland has been hosting College Scholarship Day in the fall and spring since 2002, according to Margerite Johnson, a UK sophomore working College Scholarship Day as a part of the college ambassadors program.
“This is my second year doing the college ambassadors program and my third College Scholarship Day that I’ve worked,” UK senior and Keeneland college ambassador Olivia Gapolite said. “They say Keeneland’s for everyone. (College Scholarship Day) is a good way to get the younger generation into racing.”
When each of the 10 races were called, two winners were picked and taken to the Winner’s Circle to be awarded their scholarships.
One winner received a $2,000 scholarship and the other received one of the prize baskets provided by local businesses in Lexington, according to Gapolite.
In addition to the two winners announced during each race, two students were awarded a $10,000 scholarship during the fifth race of the day.
Alex Wesley, a UK senior majoring in finance and accounting was one of the two $10,000 scholarship winners.
Wesley said she does not usually enter raffles, because she has yet to win even the smallest of raffles such as an elementary class candy raffle. However, during the fifth race, she received a call informing her she had just won a $10,000 scholarship.
“I’m applying to law school right now,” Wesley said. “My first thought was that I might not have to take out loans for the first year.”
Despite attending Keeneland “many times over the years,” this was Wesley’s first time attending College Scholarship Day.
“I’m starting it and ending it with a bang. It’s been a good day,” Wesley said.
For those who didn’t win the raffle, gift bags were handed out as students entered the gates containing a t-shirt, a Keeneland ticket valid for any day of the fall meet, a free hot dog voucher and a free cycle class, according to UK juniors Noelle Gavrish and Neya Tipatel.
Keeneland will be hosting their next College Scholarship Day during the 2024 Spring Meet.
