SCM Annual Fund

A yearly request for tax-deductible support that provides crucial funding for St. Catherine’s Montessori. Gifts to the annual fund allow us to complete the school’s operating budget and fully fund the cost of educating every St. Catherine’s student. Like tuition, annual fund contributions are unrestricted revenue that directly funds:

• Salaries, benefits and professional development for guides and staff
• Classroom materials
• Extracurricular activities
• Tuition assistance
• Campus utilities and maintenance

Any time!

We officially kick off the fundraising year in September with SCM Annual Fund Month, during which we ask our community make a gift or pledge by September 30. Launching a robust annual fund drive in September gives us solid financial footing for the remainder of the school year. 

Although the drive runs for one month, we absolutely request and accept contributions throughout the school year. April 30 is the deadline to give and fulfill pledges to appear in Annual Report.

St. Catherine’s accepts gifts via check, credit card, cash, and securities. Some families give through donor advised funds and family foundations. Online gifts and pledges can be made here on the school website. Checks can be dropped off at the Front Desk or mailed to St. Catherine’s – please note “SCM Annual Fund” on the memo line.

Contact Lyndsey Ray, advancement director, at lray@stcathmont.org or (713) 665-2195 to discuss securities transfers, giving through a donor advised fund, making a qualified charitable deduction from your IRA, or including St. Catherine's in your planned giving.

Yes! We love it when our donors make use of matching programs to increase the impact of their gifts. Please let us know you intend to submit your gift for a match, then follow your company's submission process using our Tax ID number: 74-1727136. We will notify you once we have received those matching funds.

At St. Catherine's, as at most independent schools, tuition and fees only cover a portion of the cost to educate every student. Gifts to the annual fund bridge the difference. 

Maintaining affordable tuition for families who wish to send their children to St. Catherine's is a fundamental principle in which our foundresses, Sister Edna Ann Hebert, O.P. and Sister Shirley Owens, O.P., firmly believed when they opened the school in 1966. It is a value that holds true today. If we did not raise funds each year to support the school's daily operations, the only other method to fully fund operating expenses would be to increase tuition significantly. St. Catherine's has been able to grow because of our history of generous community giving.