Our schools are characterized by dedicated principals, teachers, and pastors all of whom see as their mission the fostering of a safe, caring, and supportive environment for our children. These dedicated professionals realize full well the need to make this environment available to all children who wish to benefit from such an experience.
Our children deserve the opportunity to learn in a safe, Christian setting where they can develop a sense of responsibility and respect for themselves as well as others. The Catholic schools in the Diocese of Fall River provide that environment.

Our schools face some significant challenges in the years ahead!

•  A greater demand for the opportunity to attend a Catholic school.
•  The need to serve more culturally and economically diverse populations.
•  The challenge of attracting and retaining quality teachers and administrators.
•  The ABSOLUTE NEED to assure that no child is denied the opportunity to experience one of our schools due to financial hardship.

With rising costs, it is increasingly more difficult for some families to offer a Catholic education to their children.
For families with yearly incomes ranging from $10,000 to $25,000 (or less in some instances), elementary and middle school tuition amounts ranging from $2,400 to $5,200 annually are insurmountable.

If you are a single-parent family, or one affected by disability, unemployment, or both, you have no funds whatsoever to spend on education- no matter how badly you want it for your child.

When one sees the generosity of the hundreds of donors who have given to the Fund in the past, it is obvious there are many in the community who are extremely thankful for the gifts they have been given, and have a desire to “give back”. Due to such generosity and commitment more than $652,000 will be distributed to nearly 700 students during the 2008-2009 school year.

The objective of the St. Mary’s Education Fund is to make our schools even more accessible to our children.