Company Profile
Catholic Education Foundation
Company Overview
The Catholic Education Foundation
Founded in 1986, The Catholic Education Foundation changes the lives of students living in poverty by offering tuition assistance to attend Catholic schools, grades Pre-K through 12 in Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties. The Foundation uses its endowment and funds raised through a variety of programs to distribute more than 9,000 tuition assistance awards annually. CEF’s Operations and Programs Department reviews nearly 18,000 applications per year from the families of prospective students. A staff of 12 full-time employees and additional temporary, seasonal employees carry out the mission of the Foundation.
The Development Department generates over $8.5 million annually to fund tuition assistance and donor designated educational programs in Catholic schools. The Development staff of five including the Director works as a team with individual responsibility for specific aspects of the fundraising program. CEF’s Development department comprises the Director of Development, Associate Director of Development for Annual Giving, Manager of Grants & Compliance, Manager of Alumni Relations, Manager of Advancement Services.
The Board of Trustees comprises twenty-five to forty volunteers and donors who are committed to personal involvement in CEF’s mission. More information at www.cefdn.org.
Notable Accomplishments / Recognition
The Catholic Education Foundation has distributed over $140,000,000 in tuition assistance awards to underserved students in the Catholic schools of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles for 25 years. CEF students attend 167 elementary schools, some with pre-K programs, and 34 high schools in the counties of Santa Barbara, Los Angeles and Ventura. The average household income of a CEF-supported family is $29,010 in 2013 with many families well under this average income.
Despite the abject poverty of many CEF students, 100% of them matriculate from grades 8 to 9. High school graduation rates have been stable at 98.2%, and 98% of graduates go on to higher education, most to 2- and 4-year institutions.
I addition to tuition awards, CEF distributes funds to improve educational excellence in the areas of arts, technology, athletics and field trips.
CEF has maintained its mission of funding individual students and reviews over 18,000 applications each year. For FY14, CEF will distribute over $13.5 million in awards to 9,700 students.