Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany

The Beacon of Hope Scholarship Fund provides financially struggling families with tuition assistance of $1,500 a year for three years, approximately half the tuition at an elementary school and one fourth the tuition at a high school. 

Since kicking off the fund, the Catholic School Office, in conjunction with the Beacon of Hope Advisory Council, has raised more than $170,000 in gifts and pledges to be used over the next three years.  The scholarship was awarded to the first 30 student recipients for the 2007-2008 school year.  It’s a great start.  But it’s not enough.

The Catholic School Office, in 2007, received an overwhelming 240 applications.  All of those families deserve assistance.  They are dedicated to their schools, sacrificing whatever they have to in order to send their children there; working several jobs, devoting countless hours to the school, relying on the help of extended family members, even going into debt. 

In addition to their evident financial struggles, the commonality amongst all of the applicants – regardless or race, gender or religion – is the families’ passionate expression of hope, faith and happiness their children receive at Catholic School.  To them, the sacrifices they make to send their children to Catholic School are worth it.  For example, one father wrote:

“We value the Christian education that our children receive from this high quality educational institution.  We enjoy the sense of family and that the children are not just a number.  We are a family of 7 and this will help defray the costs of sending our children (with 1 being added to the cost next year) to this exceptional school.”

Catholic Schools are needed now more than ever in an ever-changing, fast-paced global community.  Studies have shown that graduates of Catholic Schools are more likely to go to college, earn a higher income, and become active participants in their communities and in parish life.  It is our responsibility to provide that opportunity to children regardless of their family’s financial position.  Through the Beacon of Hope Scholarship Fund, we are not only helping families today, we are shaping the families of tomorrow. 
Put Faith in Our Future.  Donate Today.

Imagine: If all 240 applicants were to receive the Beacon of Hope Scholarship, then we would need $1.08 million dollars over the next three years, or $360,000 per year.  As word spreads about the Beacon of Hope Scholarship Fund, the number of applicants is sure to rise. 

Donors to the fund are living, breathing beacons of hope to the children we serve.  They are members of our communities that wish to invest in the future of our children, our neighborhoods and our faith.  They are people like you.  As testimony to the value of Catholic Education in today’s world, put faith in our future by donating to the Beacon of Hope Fund today. 

In a note received in September 2007, the mother of one of the first Beacon of Hope recipients writes:

“You don’t know how grateful I was when my daughter got picked.  I am a single mother who is trying to give my daughter the best education and life I can.  When I opened the letter I just cried.  God works in great ways.”

Just like her daughter, hundreds of students in the Diocese of Albany are looking for a Beacon of Hope.  By contributing to the Beacon of Hope Fund, you will have a direct and lasting impact on the lives of young people by helping to keep them enrolled at the Catholic school where they are flourishing. Every dollar you contribute goes directly to a student in the form of tuition assistance, opening up a world of hope and opportunity.  

We graciously accept gifts of any size – there is no gift too small to support a child’s future.  Individuals in the position to do so may sponsor one or more students at $1,500 per year by joining the Beacon of Hope Society. Members receive correspondence, cards and letters from the student(s).  Additionally, you may specify that you would like your gift to support a student at a specific school, and gifts may be made in honor or memory of a loved one.

Get Involved

There are many ways to get involved, whether or not you are able to contribute financially.  Opportunities include:

 

 “Every day I can’t help but think that all children and their families that desire it deserve the gift of Catholic Education.  Through Beacon of Hope, I believe this will one day be possible.”
– Sr. Mary Jane Herb, IHM, Ph.D., Superintendent

For more information, contact Nicole Pezzulo