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Scholarships awarded to minority students

Posted at 7:11 PM, Apr 27, 2016
and last updated 2016-04-27 22:11:01-04

Cox Las Vegas awarded 10 high schoolers scholarships Wednesday, as they get ready to head off to college.  

They partnered with diverse and minority organizations to give the scholarships to students.  

The scholarships mean more to students who say graduation can sometimes be hard to achieve.  

According to the Department of Education, Nevada has consistently been ranked one of the lowest in graduation rates, with just 70 percent of students graduating in 2014. The national average was 82 percent.  For African-American students across the state, that percentage drops to only 54 percent graduating from high school.  

"A lot of African American kids don't think they can go to college," says one scholarship winner, Maya Rawls. "When they know these different scholarships are out there for them, they can actually try." 

Cox Las Vegas made a five-year commitment to give these scholarships. They hope to offer $175,000 by the end of that time period.