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Annual and Endowed scholarships play an ever-increasing role in assuring that deserving young women have access to a St. Mary's Academy education. One-third of St. Mary's students receive some form of tuition assistance, including scholarships, discounts, and outright awards of financial aid. In the 2006-07 school year, over $600,000 was disbursed to students and their families for such tuition assistance. No student receives full tuition remission; families are responsible for a portion of tuition costs within their reach financially. In addition, students and families give one hour of service to St. Mary's for every $100 received in tuition assistance.
St. Mary's Academy upholds the mission and tradition of our founders, the Sisters of the Holy Names, and therefore values access and acceptance, diversity and inclusion. Through the generosity of scholarship donors, young women in need of aid who desire to enter our school and who qualify for entrance, are able to access the life-changing educational experience at St. Mary's.
Contact St. Mary's Director of Development Margueritte Kim at (503) 228-7181 to establish a scholarship.
An Annual Scholarship at St. Mary's Academy is defined as a yearly contribution of at least $1,000 directed to scholarship. These scholarships are awarded in their entirety each year to selected students. Annual scholarships may be named in honor or in memory of individuals or groups, such as families. The expectation is that the donor(s) will renew at least the minimum contribution of $1,000 on an annual basis. The cost of funding a full scholarship at St. Mary's for the current academic year is $9,050.
Endowed scholarships are established with a minimum contribution of $10,000. These funds become part of St. Mary's endowment portfolio and are maintained in separate accounts. The endowment is grown as a result of outright contributions as well as the reinvestment of capital gains and interest. A portion of the interest earned annually is disbursed to selected students in the form of financial aid or scholarships. There is no maximum ceiling for these contributions: endowed scholarships range from $10,000 to $350,000 in St. Mary's current portfolio. Donors may continue to contribute to endowed scholarships after their initiation, thereby building a larger pool of aid and increasing their impact. Tuition at St. Mary's for the 2007-08 academic year is $9,050, so the larger the endowed scholarship fund, the greater the benefit in aid to our students.
Many of our existing scholarships are named to honor living individuals or groups, or to memorialize deceased alumnae and friends. Any endowed or annual scholarship may be named according to the donor's wishes.
St. Mary's development staff works in conjunction with donors to establish criteria for awarding scholarships. Some criteria to consider are:
- Minimum grade point average for eligibility and renewal;
- Class level (some donors wish to benefit advanced students, others incoming freshmen or sophomores);
- Whether renewed to the same student for a series of years or disbursed to a different student each year;
- Awarded for excellence in a particular discipline or area, such as Science, Math, English, or a foreign language.
A further consideration is whether the scholarship donor wishes to remain anonymous, or to have contact by correspondence with the recipient. Several of our scholarship donors receive an annual report on their student recipient, usually accompanied by a personal thank you letter from the student.
In most cases, the actual scholarship award decisions are made by the school's financial aid committee. If the scholarship involves an academic discipline or department, decisions are made in consultation with appropriate faculty and staff members.
If you have questions about annual or endowed scholarships, or other types of contributions to St. Mary's Academy, please feel free to contact St. Mary's Director of Development Margueritte Kim at (503) 228-7181.
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