St. Francis High School is one of the finest Catholic schools in the Chicago area. Nevertheless, we must continually evolve to meet the challenges and opportunities of educating students.
St. Francis High School is one of the finest Catholic schools in the Chicago area. Among all the investments made here, none will have a more lasting impact than those gifts added to the St. Francis High School Endowment Fund.
A strong endowment is the “story behind the story” at the most successful schools, universities, and cultural institutions across the country. The institutions that set the standards of quality, push the frontiers of innovation, and sustain greatness over generations are, almost without exception, those with strong endowments.
At St. Francis High School, we’ve built an extraordinary school through the talent and commitment of visionary leaders, gifted educators, and dedicated families since 1957. And so far, our endowment has played only a modest role in our success.
While other schools stand on stronger endowments, we’ve built an excellent school by making exceptionally careful use of our resources, identifying and developing outstanding talent in our faculty and staff, and inspiring the generous support of our families and alumni year after year. Imagine what we could do if, in addition to those defining strengths, we also had a truly strong endowment…
A stronger endowment will enable St. Francis High School to:
Invest in innovative program ideas, take risks and continue pursuing new ways to enhance an already-great educational and developmental experience for our students.
Attract, develop, and retain the strongest faculty in an increasingly competitive environment.
Keep St. Francis High School accessible by controlling tuition growth and funding greater financial aid for families.
Maintain and enhance our campus without relying as heavily on tuition or campaigns.
Sustain a financially strong school through fluctuations in the economy and environment.
And, most importantly, ensure that St. Francis High School will thrive and be available for future generations of students.
An endowment is the permanent capital of an institution comprised of gifts given over time. St. Francis High School’s endowment provides funding to support the school’s academic mission for current and future students and lends fiscal stability to the school.
You should give to the endowment to help reduce the school’s reliance on tuition and keep tuition rates from increasing exorbitantly. Income from the endowment directly supports the operating budget. Unrestricted endowment provides the school with the greatest flexibility.
St. Francis High School is at a competitive disadvantage when compared to other schools nationally, both in total endowment and in endowment per student.
Gifts may be paid by check, credit card, stock transfers, or wire transfer. In addition, transfers of appreciated assets such as real estate, art, etc. are all acceptable means of funding an endowment. Planned gifts and bequests may also be used to add to endowment.
While it is likely that there will always be an annual tuition increase, the goal of building the endowment is to mitigate those tuition increases and to keep them as low as possible. As the endowment grows, so does the school’s ability to keep tuition in check.
Donors can indicate if they wish for their gift to be directed toward support of faculty, financial aid, academic or extra-curricular programs, capital improvements or unrestricted.
The Endowment Policy, approved by the St. Francis High School Board of Directors, allows the school to spend no more that 4% of a three-year calendar average of the endowment’s value. This conservative spending rate allows the endowment to grow.
The investments are managed by an independent outside financial investment company that is overseen by the Finance Committee of the St. Francis High School Board of Directors.