Agency offers challenge grants to help schools in New York, Brooklyn

Published: 2005-05-03

NEW YORK (CNS) -- The Children's Scholarship Fund, an agency that helps low-income families send their children to nonpublic schools, has offered challenge grants to the Archdiocese of New York and the Diocese of Brooklyn. At a time when New York and Brooklyn church officials are announcing the closing of some schools and reporting severe difficulties in keeping others operating, the grants are intended to provide needed assistance to inner-city parents who would like to transfer their children from the public school system to Catholic schools. Up to $1 million a year for eight years will go to the New York Archdiocese on the basis of one dollar for every two in new money it raises for inner-city scholarships. Using the same matching formula, the Brooklyn Diocese can receive up to $300,000 a year for four years.

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