LCSS Receives Straight A’s!

It’s A’s all around for the Lafayette Catholic Schools!  Earlier this month, the Indiana Department of Education released their 2013-14 Accountability Grades for all Indiana schools. The Lafayette Catholic School System  achieved a straight A report card:

St. Mary Cathedral (K–3) – A

St. Boniface (4-6) – A

St. Lawrence (K-6) – A

Central Catholic (7-12) – A

We thank and congratulate our Principals and teachers for their countless hours and dedication to ensuring their students continue to strive for greatness. We are so blessed!

A few years ago the Indiana State Board of Education changed the accountability labels for schools to the easy to understand letter grades of A, B, C, D and F.  The A-F model is Indiana’s way of allowing parents and communities to better recognize how schools are performing with much of the assessment being based on academic student growth.   

While the A-F Accountability system may be necessary for Indiana to measure the performance of its schools, we in the Catholic schools know there are many other measures of evaluating our schools.  As our tag line states, the LCSS is in the business of Preparing Students for Life.  We are about educating the WHOLE student, and as a result we know the true measure of the quality of the education we provide is in our students and graduates.  They are using their God given gifts to aim high and make a difference in the lives of others all in the name of Christ.  

Do you know someone considering the Lafayette Catholic Schools?  Encourage them to learn more by calling 765.474.7500 or emailing info@lcss.org.

Angie Schrader

Admissions & Student Aid Director

Share Your Story on GreatSchools.com

Nearly 25% of the new students enrolling in the LCSS since the beginning of the last school year moved here from outside the Lafayette area. Since the beginning of school, 6 families relocating to the area have called the LCSS for more information. For these parents, finding a good school for their children is a big priority and many are doing their research on the website GreatSchools.com.

At GreatSchools.com, parents can not only learn about how a school performed on state testing, school programs and extra-curriculars, they can also read about the real life experiences of current parents.

So many amazing things are going on every day in the LCSS. We need these stories to be shared! Will you take a few minutes to share your story with those who are checking out our schools? 

Click here for the Great Schools website, choose IN, and find your school (St. is spelled out Saint). 

Write a review today! Sign your name and we will send you a small token of our appreciation. 

Parents considering a school for their child want to hear first hand about the experiences of families in that school. We need your help in spreading the good news at LCSS.  

Thank you!

Angie Schrader

Admissions & Student Aid

952 and Counting

For the fifth year in a row, the Lafayette Catholic School System has continued to grow!  We are 952 students across Kindergarten through grade 12.  Here is what we know about these 952 students…

95% of the students represent 11 Catholic parishes. 93% are parishioners in Tippecanoe County.

44 are NEW to the Lafayette Catholic School System in grades 1-12.

412 attend Central Catholic, while 540 are in the elementary schools.

The average class size is 73 students ranging from 55 in grade 12 to 89 in grade 3.

They represent 550 families, and 53 of those families are NEW to the LCSS.

762 have a Lafayette address.

136 students have a West Lafayette address.
54 students have an address outside of Lafayette or West Lafayette.

57% or 544 students receive some form of Student Aid, which includes tuition assistance, voucher or SGO.

35% or 336 students qualified for a Full or Partial Indiana School Choice Scholarship (aka voucher).

113 students were awarded an SGO grant ranging from $500 to $2500.

We are excited about the growth of the LCSS. Welcome to all of our new families! We look forward to a great year and a bright future!

Summer Admissions Update

For many school families, July 4^th seems to be that mental mark after which it is time to start thinking about the next school year.  The weekend ads fill with school supply sales, and families will flock to the annual Summer Uniform sale set for Sunday, July 20, Noon – 3 pm and Monday, July 21, Noon – 7 pm in the CC cafeteria. 

While current families are getting ready for school, the Admissions Office has been working to process applications for many new students. If you know someone who is interested in the Lafayette Catholic Schools, there is still time to make application for 2014-15. Refer them to Admissions & Student Aid Director Angie Schrader, 765.474.7500 or Schrader@lcss.org.

STUDENT AID

Choice Scholarships, SGO Grants, and LCSS Tuition Assistance. More than 250 applications for more than 450 students are being processed for these various forms of Student Aid.  

The Student Aid awarded makes an incredible difference in the lives of so many students and their families.  And now with current LCSS students being able to participate in the School Choice Scholarship (voucher) program, Catholic education is a reality for more families.  

Did you know the income guidelines for the School Choice Scholarship program are the same as for the federal Free (full voucher) and Reduced (partial voucher) lunch program?  And did you know that at the high school level, even with a full voucher, the cost of tuition is still not doable for many families.  LCSS Tuition Assistance can help if it is available.

Help keep Choice Scholarship program alive by contacting your legislators about the benefits of the School Choice Scholarship program.

For more information about the Student Aid programs available to LCSS students, contact Angie Schrader, 765.474.7500 or Schrader@lcss.org.

Fritz and Ellen Holzgrefe Scholarship

We are blessed to have many generous donors who have established and continue to fund  more than twenty need based and merit based scholarships. These scholarships are in addition to the other Student Aid programs which includes the LCSS Tuition Assistance, SGO Grants and the Indiana School Choice Scholarship (voucher).

We are excited to announce a new scholarship, the Fritz and Ellen Holzgrefe Scholarship. Fritz and Ellen (pictured to the right) were ardent supporters of the Lafayette Catholic Schools. Their children Fritz Jr. CC ’86 and Regis CC ’93 established the scholarship with the Lafayette Diocesan Foundation, Inc. in memory of their parents dedication to Central Catholic. The minimum distribution for scholarship(s) will be $4,000. The student(s) must be a registered practicing parishioner of a Tippecanoe County Catholic Parish. Financial need may be considered, but is not the basis or foundation for this scholarship. The student and/or family should be a witness to service for the Lafayette Community and Catholic Church.  

It is the hope of the Holzgrefe family that this scholarship will enable Catholic families to continue to provide a Catholic education as their children move on into the senior high school years.  Please join me in a very special thank you to the Holzgrefe family for their generosity and commitment to Catholic education and for their years of service and dedication to our schools.

Information for scholarships like the Holzgrefe Scholarship are distributed to eligible families by the CC Guidance Office.  Recipients for all of the scholarships for 2014-15 will be listed in the next Executive Director newsletter.

Enrollment Continuing to Grow

It is an exciting time to be a part of the Lafayette Catholic School System! Since the beginning of this school year 20 new students transferred to the LCSS.  25 students in grades 1 – 12 have thus far made application to transfer to the LCSS for 2014-15.  And just as many, if not more, are projected to apply between now and August 12.  And with Kindergarten classes at St. Mary and St. Lawrence on track, 2014-15 is looking to be another successful year of continued growth.

With the 2014-15 registration for current students around the corner, available space is anticipated to be tight in some grades. If you know of someone giving thought to choosing a Catholic education for their children, encourage them to call the Admissions Office now. Waiting until the summer could be too late for some grades. 2014-15 looks to be even better than 2013-14, and we would like as many families as possible to experience the great education the LCSS is ready to provide!

There are many exciting initiatives taking place in our school system right now. We have made tremendous progress on our strategic plan which was recently put in place.   We are seeing technology upgrades which will better prepare our students for life after the Catholic schools, such as the one-to-one initiative to be implemented next year at Central Catholic.  Our elementary schools continue to shine with outstanding test scores, increased technology offerings, and exceptional service and outreach opportunities for our students. We have made physical upgrades to Central Catholic with the new entrance area and a chapel professing the reason for our school to everyone driving by.  In addition, we are diligently working on our Central Catholic Athletic Campaign which includes updates to our track & field, soccer fields and much more.

The word is getting around that the LCSS learning environment is truly preparing its students for the next phase of their academic career whether it be on to junior high or off to college in the fall. And more importantly, more and more students are developing a deeper relationship with Christ causing them to give a closer look at living a life of service to others than to self.

March 2014 Admissions Update

April 15 is right around the corner for families considering a Catholic education

for their children next year. Why is April 15 important, besides for filing those 

dreaded tax returns? Students completing an application prior to April 15 receive Priority Placement. This is especially good for families who are registered at a Catholic parish, as they have priority for any open spaces over other applicants if they submit their application prior to April 15. 

You may wonder why this is important. We always have space for new students, right? At the beginning of this current school year, waiting lists had to be started for grade 7 at CC and for 1st grade at St. Mary. Fortunately St. Lawrence 1st grade had openings as there have been several new 1st grade students during this school year! So as you “tell your story” about the Lafayette Catholic Schools to your friends and family, encourage them to make application prior to April 15. After April 15, all applications will be considered on a first come, first serve basis. Application packets are available for all grades at www.lcss.org. 

Priority Placement means: 

When space is available after current LCSS students register in late April, the 

following considerations will be taken into account for priority placement for 

applications received by April 15: 

1. Siblings of current LCSS students and alumni, and children of LCSS 

employees.

2. Children of registered families from the six Tippecanoe County parishes.

3. Children of registered families in parishes within the Diocese of Lafayette.

4. Children of registered families in parishes outside the Diocese of Lafayette.

5. All other students are welcome.

Student Aid Notes

Current LCSS families must file their Student Aid applications with Smart Tuition Aid by March 23, 2014, 11:59 PM. Newly applying families for 2014-15 have no Student Aid application deadline, but are encouraged to apply as early as possible. Earlier application ensures earlier award notification. Notification of all Student Aid awards will begin in late April. www.smarttuitionaid.com