Tickets, sponsorships available for celebration of Catholic education

By John Shaughnessy

As the archdiocese prepares for its annual celebration of Catholic education, major progress has already been made toward the goal of raising $2 million to benefit families who want their children to attend Catholic schools.

At the same time, the archdiocese has announced the four people who will be honored during the 18th annual Celebrating Catholic School Values: Scholarship and Career Achievement Awards event—which will be from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Oct. 8 at the Crowne Plaza Grand Hall at Union Station in Indianapolis.

Julie Bowers and Dr. David Wolf will receive Career Achievement Awards while John and Sarah Lechleiter will be honored with the Community Service Award. (Related: Catholic school values are at the heart of award recipients who make a difference)

This year’s event will once again focus on promoting the importance of Indiana Tax Credit Scholarships as a way to make a Catholic education possible for children from lower- and moderate-income families.

“Many things changed in the school choice laws this year, but the most important allowed for Tax Credit Scholarships to apply to income-eligible students already in our Catholic schools from kindergarten through 12th grade,” says G. Joseph Peters, special consultant to the archdiocese’s Office of Catholic Education.

“A Tax Credit Scholarship of at least $500 per child, given for one year, allows an eligible student to receive the state school voucher the following year and for up to 12 years of education in a Catholic school—a potential of $60,000 in state voucher assistance.”

From a donor’s standpoint, there is also the appeal of a tax benefit from contributing to a scholarship.

“With a 50 percent state tax credit, and up to a 35 percent federal tax deduction, a donor can give $1,000 toward scholarships for as little as $150,” Peters notes.

In advance of the Celebrating Catholic School Values event on Oct. 8, four information sessions were held across the archdiocese in late August and early September to raise awareness about the benefits of Tax Credit Scholarships.

“All four gatherings were a success,” Peters says. “We had 393 attendees from most of the schools. Counting some early donations, more than $578,000 has been collected to date, mostly for Tax Credit Scholarships. A goal of $2 million has been set by the event development committee to be raised by the committee and the individual schools, and celebrated on Oct. 8.”

To help meet that goal, there are several levels of sponsorship available for this year’s event and scholarship program. Diamond sponsorships are available at $100,000, ruby at $50,000, and emerald at $25,000. Platinum sponsorships are available at $15,000, gold at $10,000, silver at $5,000, and bronze at $2,000.
 

For more information about the event or sponsorships, contact the archdiocese’s Office of Stewardship and Development at 317-236-1568 or 800-382-9836, ext. 1568. †