(AP) -- The South Carolina Education Department says the class of 2012 was offered a record $1.1 billion in college scholarships.
That tops the amount offered to last year's public high school seniors by nearly $100 million.
The total includes scholarships not accepted by students. It represents all scholarships offered to students as they consider which two- or four-year college to attend, and assumes students keep their scholarships through graduation.
The state gathers the information from school districts, as well as charter schools, the governor's schools in Hartsville and Greenville, and the School for the Deaf and the Blind.
The total amount offered to graduates over the past five years comes to nearly $4.6 billion. The tallies have risen yearly since the state began tracking the figure, from $684 million in 2007.
(Copyright ©2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
