Did you know that each Catholic elementary school within the Archdiocese receives scholarship/funding from the Catholic Services Appeal Foundation? Around 700 students per year receive CSAF scholarships, to both Catholic elementary schools and Catholic high schools. Thanks to generous donations, students from various economic backgrounds can profit from the life-changing experience of a Catholic School education.
“The energy of being around other like-minded Catholics creates such a captivating atmosphere,” explains Mi, a recent Catholic High School alumna. “It allows for the sharing of experiences from different individuals, whose insights can be mind-opening and inspirational.”
Catholic school students benefit from smaller class sizes, college-preparatory coursework, a wide range of service opportunities and extra-curricular activities, and the formation of solid, lifelong friendships. Yet beyond that, students “…learn about their faith, [are] encouraged to practice virtue, and develop philosophical critical thinking skills,” shares Sloan Jacobs, a middle school student at Providence Academy in Plymouth.
Chris and Amy DeCrans, parents of students at Blessed Trinity Catholic School in Richfield, state that the “messages and values that we teach our children at home are reinforced at school. Our children have opportunities to grow in their faith…and reflect critically and compassionately on issues facing our world today.”
“The teachers and staff care about each student and their formation as a whole,” says another area Catholic school parent and alumna, Danielle Moritko Johansen. “The small class sizes allow for teachers and students to connect in ways that provide students every opportunity to excel…I am confident that my son will receive more than an excellent education; he will receive a skill set that will set him up to be successful in any and every way he chooses.”
And the choices at area Catholic schools are truly amazing. Be it preschool, elementary, middle school or high school; inner city, suburban or rural, Catholic schools in the Archdiocese offer opportunities for all, including:
- Classical; Montessori; STEAM; STEM; College-Prep; Dual-language; and International Baccalaureate programs
- Advanced honors courses and AP opportunities
- Study/organizational, budgeting, and public speaking skills
- Academic, spiritual, social, psychological and family supports
- Diverse socio-economic and ethnic student bodies
- Up-to-date technology and online safety awareness training
- Academic travel and study-abroad opportunities
- Agricultural, digital media, and foreign language courses
- Religion/Theological studies
- Enriching worship, retreats, service-learning and spiritual growth opportunities, including frequent offering of the sacraments
- Prayer partner programs that pair older students with those in younger grades
- Respected mentors
- Extra-curricular activities including competitive athletics and fine arts programs with state-of-the-art facilities
- Leadership opportunities/opportunities to grow in confidence and maturity
Sums up Senior Lauren McCann from St. Agnes School in St. Paul, “The people that I have met [here] are some of the most humble, honest, and fun human beings I have ever encountered….I have been shaped by beautiful souls and have let knowledge of truth, goodness, and beauty seep into my being….I will be forever grateful for my [Catholic School] experience.”
*To apply for a CSAF Catholic School scholarship, speak with the admissions department of the Catholic school in which you are interested, and visit www.mytads.com and click on the “Financial Aid Assessment” button to begin the tuition assistance application process.
