Tuesday, August 5, 2014

The Cost of Catholic Education

Having spent a number of years working with Catholic Schools, I am often surprised by number of people who do not understand the cost of sending their children to a Catholic school.

Many parents seem to think that the cost of education is the price charged for tuition. There is often a misunderstanding that families are being asked to pay the cost for the children to be educated.

In reality, parishes with parish schools, and other Catholic schools, are being supported by the local parish, possibly the diocese and the fundraising efforts of the school. Many times, the tuition that is being requested is less than 50% of the cost of education.

Families need to realize the benefit of the "scholarship" (while not listed as such) that is being offered though low tuition rates, in addition to other scholarships that are being offered. In the case of my current parish assignment, the cost of educating each child is a little over $9,000. This cost is high because of our low enrollment. We are charging $4,125 for tuition. This amounts to a $5,000 scholarship to every student enrolled in our school. When I was on the School Advisory Committee for Great Falls Central Catholic High School, the gap was even more.

I mention this so Catholic school families and benefactors realize the importance of continued support over and above the perceived cost of education indicated by our tuition rates.

Please remember to be generous in supporting Catholic Education in our Catholic Schools.

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