School choice program throws
7th birthday bash

(L to r) Sister Virginia Paschal, I.H.M., principal of B.V.M. School, Darby; Mary Rochford, Office for Catholic Education, and Sister John Magdalen, I.H.M., principal of St. Joseph School, Downingtown.

By Lou Baldwin
Special to The CS&T

HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s groundbreaking EITC (Educational Improvement Tax Credit) program threw a seventh birthday party in Harrisburg on May 6 and more than 2,600 people came to celebrate — including seven buses of people representing Catholic schools in the Philadelphia Archdiocese.

Under EITC, as pioneered in Pennsylvania and copied elsewhere, businesses donate to organizations that either give grants for nonpublic school scholarships or grants for public school improvement programs. In return, the companies receive a Pennsylvania state tax credit that almost equals their donation.

“Having over 2,600 students, parents and teachers all gathered at the Capitol to celebrate the message of the EITC program sends a clear and strong message to the members of the legislature that school choice is working in Pennsylvania,” said Andrew T. LeFevre, executive director of the Harrisburg-based REACH (Road to Educational Freedom through Choice) Alliance, an organizer of the event.

“Legislators from both parties should be commended for their strong support for the EITC program, and the choices and chances it provides to students and families all across the Commonwealth,” LeFevre added.

Since 2001, according to REACH statistics, $360 million, donated by 3,200 businesses, has benefited more than 158,000 children. This year alone, 44,000 children have been assisted.

In response to the success of the program, state authorization for the tax credits totaled $75 million this year. It’s not too late for companies to participate, according to Stacy Henninger, director of communications for REACH. She said $8.6 million in tax credits are still available.

Generally speaking, a company receives a 75 percent tax credit for a one-year commitment to the program, and a 90 percent tax credit for a two-year commitment. The credit is technically limited to $200,000, but large corporations that operate through multiple subsidiary corporations may receive the credit for each.

There are also exceptions for contributions for pre-K programs that receive an even more generous tax credit.

In the Philadelphia Archdiocese, the principal conduit for such grants is BLOCS (Business Leadership Organized for Catholic Schools). This school year, BLOCS received and distributed $2.3 million in grants from EITC funds, according to associate director Christina DiMichele.

“Pennsylvania’s EITC program is very valuable to our families and critical in helping to sustain the current enrollment in our schools,” DiMichele said. “Without the support of the legislature and contributions from participating companies, BLOCS would not be able to assist the thousands of families it does each year,” she added.

Among the archdiocesan contingent in Harrisburg for the EITC birthday party were two buses of students, parents and teachers from West Grove’s 217-pupil Assumption B.V.M. School. They were there, explained Assumption’s principal, Danielle White, because students Ryan Wiesenberg, grade seven, and Kyle Wiesenberg, grade three, were to be honored for a Power Point presentation they created about the EITC program.

“They did a beautiful job, and we are proud of them,” White said. “The financial burden of Catholic education excludes some families from our schools, and EITC offers parents the opportunity to send their children to the schools.”

Lou Baldwin is a member of St. Leo Parish and a freelance writer.

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