Matt Baron/Shutterstock / Matt Baron/Shutterstock
As Cinco de Mayo approaches, 772 Taco Bell fans and employees also have another reason to celebrate. These students, ages 16 to 26, receive college scholarships from their favorite taco restaurant.
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For many years, Taco Bell has openly displayed its commitment to the education of its workers. The company advertises the tuition assistance on job flyers at its restaurants. It funds tuition and covers the cost of books and supplies for select online schools and universities through its partner, Guild Education. Students can receive up to $5,250 per year in tuition for many programs and free tuition for others.
However, this year the channel is also offering scholarships (ranging from $5,000 to $25,000) to 772 students who received the Live Mas Scholarship Award through the nonprofit Taco Bell Foundation.
This year’s winners were selected from a field of 8,000 applicants and include nearly 200 Taco Bell fans, 150 Taco Bell team members and 453 winners who applied to renew their former Live Mas scholarship, according to a Press release. The scholarships total over $8 million.
The awards were made possible with the help of musician Lil Nas X, who serves as Director of Impact for the YUM! Chain of brands.
Winners also have the chance to attend the Live Mas Scholarship Summer of Creativity, held in San Diego, California this year.
Taco Bell customers have the opportunity to contribute to the Taco Bell Foundation, which funds the scholarships, by rounding the price of their order to the nearest dollar and donating the difference to the foundation.
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“I know firsthand what it’s like to be a young person who dreams of breaking convention and changing an industry,” Lil Nas X said via press release. “It is an honor to support these Live Más Fellows and I look forward to seeing their next chapters unfold.”
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