by Vince Anch
This is a very special time for all to reflect on the meaning of the Advent season and rejoice in the birth of Our Lord.
Many gifts will be exchanged over the next few weeks as families gather for the holiday season. For the Catholic Education Foundation, it is also a special time as it is announcing a new scholarship to help families afford Catholic education.
CEF is establishing a new scholarship fund to honor Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann that will support “working poor” families. This will be a great gift for some families in the very near future.
CEF’s scholarships typically support families who qualify for the federal free and reduced lunch program. To qualify for free lunch, family household income must be 130% of the federal poverty rate or lower. Families that total 185% of poverty qualify for reduced lunches. The new Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann Legacy Scholarship will enable CEF to expand scholarships to families who don’t qualify for federal assistance but cannot afford tuition. This will allow CEF to expand its scholarships to families who have household incomes reaching up to 300% of the federal poverty rate, also known as “working poor.”
CEF is collecting donations now for the new scholarship and plans to start awarding scholarships next school year. Revenues generated from this fund will be used to award the scholarships. To date, over $500,000 has been raised for this special fund. The goal for the fund is to reach over $1 million in the near future with hopes of growing the fund with annual donations.
Archbishop Naumann has been a true champion of Catholic education. His mother was a Catholic school teacher and actually served as his kindergarten teacher. He has served on numerous Catholic school boards and has been an active board member for the Catholic Education Foundation for over two decades. CEF board chair RJ Gildea remarked at CEF’s recent annual dinner that “we couldn’t think of a better way to honor the archbishop for all that he has done to support and strengthen our schools than to name a new scholarship after him.”
This fund will help those families who don’t qualify for federal assistance but simply can’t afford tuition.
Those interested in making a gift in honor of Archbishop Naumann and supporting the scholarship can contact CEF at (913) 647-0344 or visit the website at: https://www.cefgala.org/give-now.
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