Lawmakers and Donors Help Our Students

Tuition Grants Help 414 Students
Posted on 12/28/2018

Iowa lawmakers have passed an annual bill since 2006 that allows Bishop Heelan Schools and other private schools to raise funds for tuition aid. Thanks to Iowa legislation and donors who made gifts in 2017 to the Monsignor Lafferty Tuition Foundation, $640,253 was awarded in tuition grants to 414 students attending our schools this year.

Details are captured in the 2018 Annual Report of the Monsignor Lafferty Tuition Foundation of the Sioux City Diocese, which lists how 2017 donations were allocated to schools in 2018.

The recent foundation report shows a grand total of $2,769,969 raised in 2017 has funded tuition grants for students attending all 16 Catholic school systems in the Diocese this year. The report also lists the grand total of $2,871,004 raised from donors this year that will fund student tuition grants in the Diocese next school year. 

The Monsignor Lafferty Tuition Foundation is a charitable 501(c)(3) organization supporting all of the Catholic K-12 schools in the Diocese of Sioux City. The foundation raises funds to provide need-based tuition assistance to families whose income is at or below 350% of the poverty level.

Contributors to the Lafferty foundation receive an Iowa income tax credit equal to 65% of their donation -- the highest tax credit in Iowa -- and usually qualify for federal income tax deductibility.

Tuition grants from the Lafferty Foundation enable parents to choose the educational environment that best meets their child’s needs, according to Patty Lansink, diocese superintendent of Catholic schools. The tuition aid will help families who want a faith-based education for their children but have a difficult time affording it.

Heelan system families will be able to apply for Lafferty tuition grants again around Feb 1 or shortly after.

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