Georgia’s students were the ultimate winners in last week’s record-breaking Mega Millions jackpot. Since the world record $656 million jackpot began growing after the Jan. 24 drawing, it generated $25.2 million in profits for education in Georgia.

All Georgia Lottery Corp. profits are transferred to the state of Georgia to fund Georgia’s HOPE Scholarship Program and Georgia’s Pre-K Program.

“Mega Millions is a great contributor to our profits for HOPE and Pre-K,” said Georgia Lottery President and CEO Margaret DeFrancisco. “Every Mega Millions ticket purchased in Georgia directly impacts Georgia’s students and families, who benefit from the important educational programs we fund.”

Mega Millions is a 44-member consortium, comprised of 42 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Sales and profits are based on each jurisdiction’s proportional contribution to sales.

The record jackpot led the Georgia Lottery to its highest sales week ever, spurring strong sales across the board with draw games and instant games.

Georgia Lottery sales for the week ending March 31 soared to $115 million, approximately $14 million ahead of the previous weekly sales record set in February.

Georgia Lottery players won big in the historic Mega Millions jackpot. Six players won $250,000 prizes, and 48 won $10,000 prizes. Many other Georgia Lottery players won prizes ranging from $2 to $150.

Georgia Lottery retailers, the majority small business owners, also benefited, earning a 6 percent commission on tickets sold.