Cardinal’s Scholarship Fund

The Cardinal’s Scholarship Fund provides immediate emergency tuition assistance to parents that are struggling to keep their children in Catholic schools. The Fund was established to help sustain the level of enrollment in Catholic schools. While many parents sacrifice greatly to provide a Catholic education for their children, they can’t shoulder the entire cost on their own. This tuition assistance help ensure that no child will be denied the unparalleled benefits of a Catholic school education in the Archdiocese of Chicago. Applications for assistance are generally processed by principals from the local Catholic school in a particular area of the Archdiocese.

In the brief history of the Fund over 300 scholarships have been awarded. Fundraising efforts to support these scholarships include an annual event held at The Capital Grille in Chicago. The restaurant closes its doors the Monday before Thanksgiving and welcomes in the Archdiocese to sponsor a special fundraising event. Those interested in this event are urged to contact William Booth at wbooth@archchicago.org for more details.

Special appeal made for Catholic parents suffering job loss

Recently, Cardinal George announced a special effort to provide emergency tuition assistance for parents who have suffered a job loss and cannot afford to keep their children in a Catholic school. This announcement comes at a time when the economy has reached new lows, and families are being devastated by layoffs and terminations in employment.

Unprecedented efforts are underway to seek support for the families impacted by the recession. Cardinal George has pledged $1 million to assist Catholic school families in crisis. Plans to raise funds to satisfy this goal are now being implemented. Potential funding sources including individuals, foundations, and corporations are being contacted to seek support. The goal is to provide $1,000 to each family that has made application to this effort. Potential donors are urged to consider gifts that would fund at least one family. Those wishing to know more about this effort and who want to make a contribution are urged to contact William Booth at wbooth@archchicago.org.

Over 1300 applications have been received by the Office of Catholic schools through the principals of the various schools. No additional applications are being accepted at this time.