Catholic Promise scholarship will more than halve tuition at Grand Rapids school – MLive.com
GRAND RAPIDS, MI – A new Catholic school scholarship for Grand Rapids students will reduce net tuition for qualifying families to $6,000 per student, starting with the 2026-27 school year.
Called “Catholic Promise,” the scholarship is available to students at Catholic Central High School. It was announced on Wednesday, Oct. 15.
The scholarship was described as a 10-year philanthropic commitment to ensure future affordability at Grand Rapids-based Catholic Central. Families with a household income under $300,000 can qualify.
Catholic Central’s President Greg Deja said the scholarship will address one of the greatest challenges facing Catholic schools and young families – the cost of attendance.
“In recent decades, tuition costs have risen far faster than family incomes,” Deja wrote in a letter posted online, “putting Catholic high school education out of reach for many faithful families.”
The Catholic Promise scholarship will address this at Catholic Central, he said, by reducing annual tuition costs for qualifying families from around $13,000 per student to $6,000, indexed annually for inflation.
“Families registered and in good standing at a parish in the Diocese of Grand Rapids may apply by submitting a statement of household income,” he said. “If their income is less than $300,000, the Catholic Promise Fund covers every dollar of tuition beyond the $6,000 family contribution.”
Applications for the Catholic Promise open Nov. 1.
Catholic Central will hold three informational sessions on the scholarship:
Deja told MLive to qualify, families will also need to agree on some Catholic Central expectations, including GPA, service and attendance record requirements for students.
He described it as not just a discount, but a commitment to Catholic education, “asking all people to make their own promise.”
Catholic Central now enrolls 567 students. It’s one of five high schools in the Diocese, and was founded in 1906 as the oldest co-educational diocesan Catholic high school in the nation.
There were approximately 6,456 students enrolled across all 31 Catholic schools within the Diocese of Grand Rapids as of the 2024-25 school year.
Deja described the new scholarship as not only a blessing to individual families, “but also an investment in the spiritual and social fabric of West Michigan.
“It is designed to ensure that future generations of students have access to and benefit from Catholic Central’s rich tradition of excellence,” he said.
Bishop David J. Walkowiak said the scholarship “powerfully advances our efforts to make a Catholic school education attainable for families who desire it, which has been a priority of mine over the past decade.
“It is my fervent hope and prayer that their generosity will inspire others to step forward in support of our Catholic schools,” he said.
The scholarship was made possible through the generosity of an alumni couple, Dan and Sherry Bowen, who each graduated in 1984.
The announcement comes amid consistent enrollment growth for the 31 Catholic schools within the Diocese of Grand Rapids – 7.23% since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Former Catholic schools superintendent Dave Faber previously told MLive the diocese had spent years planning and conducting outreach in partnership with its schools and parishes to bump up enrollment.
That included expanding pre-K options and constructing new buildings.
The Diocese also offers the Bishop’s Scholarship, a needs-based scholarship that opened in October 2024 for students from kindergarten through 12th grade.
Individual schools offer more localized scholarships, either merit-based or through endowment funds and grants.
Deja said the Catholic Promise scholarship, while a 10 year committment now, could extend into the future.
He said the school will continue its regularly-offered financial aid and scholarships as well, understanding that some families still struggle to get to the $6,000 threshold.
Catholic Central will continue to support them, he said.
Families can learn more about the Catholic Promise scholarship or see if their family qualifies at catholicpromise.org.
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