Tuition Assistance, Scholarships and Grants

The following is a list of the various forms of tuition assistance available for JCA students and families each year:

  • Joliet Catholic Academy Tuition Assistance – JCA awarded over $2 million to students last year in tuition assistance! The application for scholarships, financial aid, and grants are available from November 1st to December 31st for Priority Financial Aid consideration for incoming freshmen, and until April 1, 2024 for returning students. Families seeking financial aid are encouraged to complete the JCA and Joliet Diocese FACTS application (this once application makes families eligible for both programs). JCA Tuition Assistance will be awarded to enrolled students who qualify and are selected. For FACTS information, click here
  • Illinois Tax Credit Scholarships – Please visit the Empower Illinois Scholarship Granting Organization website (www.empowerillinois.org) for more information. JCA awarded over $650,000 to 54 students during the 2023-2024 school year.
  • JCA Heritage Award – The JCA Heritage Award program was instituted in the fall of 2017 to ensure future students continue to develop into the successful leaders that JCA, St. Francis Academy, and Joliet Catholic High School have been producing for more than 150 years in business, education, community service, and other industries. These merit-based awards, ranging from $500 to $5,000 focus on leadership, talent, and service. Students receiving a Heritage Award or Commendation participated in application process requiring submission of a 500-word essay, letters of recommendation, application submission, junior high grade submission, and a live interview round with the JCA Heritage Award Interview Board. The Heritage Award can be renewed as the recipient continues to develop in those areas throughout four years at Joliet Catholic Academy. Click here to view the JCA Heritage Award Application site, which opens each year October 1st.
  • Kazma Family Foundation Scholarship – JCA families active in their Catholic parish and have significant financial need may apply. The scholarship currently includes funds for each of four years of high school based on academic performance. Application is due February/March. For more information on the Kazma Family Foundation Scholarship, click here.
  • Frank Golf Scholarship in Mathematics –  provides 50% tuition assistance to incoming JCA students based on excellence in Math and financial need. Mr. Frank Golf recently retired after the 2016-2017 school year, but not before providing 50 years of service to Joliet Catholic High School and Joliet Catholic Academy as a member of the Math Department.  During his illustrious career Mr. Golf was nominated for the University of Chicago Outstanding Teacher Award and was named SFA-DLA-JCHS-JCA Alumnus of the Year. Mr. Golf is a member of the JCA Hall of Fame and received a Teacher Recognition Award from the Give Back to Others Foundation. Students will be identified through their incoming HSPT scores and financial need through FACTS. Andrew Ndoca’79 established the Frank Golf Scholarship in Mathematics to celebrate and recognize Mr. Golf’s lifelong vocation to teaching at JCA. When asked about the scholarship Mr. Ndoca commented, “My wife and I established this Scholarship to recognize, in a general sense, the positive significance a lifelong vocation has upon a community and its members. Specifically, the Frank Golf Scholarship recognizes Mr. Golf’s unique vocation in the service to less fortunate, but nevertheless gifted, students in the Joliet community.” Applications are available through the JCA Financial Aid office for incoming freshmen who have taken the JCA Placement Exam. 
  • Catholic Education Foundation (CEF) Grant – JCA families may apply for aid directly from the Joliet Diocese by completing the FACTS application. The Diocese currently awards $1,000 per student based on financial need. This can be coordinated through JCA’s Financial Aid Office. Application is due April 1, 2024. For more information on the Catholic Education Foundation Grant, click here.
  •  JCA Endowed Scholarships and Grants – JCA families may apply for aid from one of the many grants and scholarship funds made possible to students by JCA alumni and friends. Tuition assistance is awarded based on financial need. The average typical JCA tuition assistance award ranges between $1,000 and $2,000. Completion of the JCA Scholarship and Tuition Assistance application and the Diocesan FACTS application is required. Applications are due by March 1, 2024 for early consideration.
  •  Franciscan-Carmelite Scholarships – Merit based scholarship for incoming freshmen with highest ranking scores on the first sitting of the placement exam. The number of awarded recipients and monetary awards vary based on the test scores.
  •  JCA Work Service ProgramRequirement: Students in need of financial assistance to attend JCA may apply to work the JCA Summer Work Service Program. Students with the greatest financial need along with this completed application will take priority. Students should have applied for FACTS to qualify for the JCA Work Program.Click here for Work Program Application
  • Catholic School Teacher Discount – Teachers of participating parishes in the Diocese of Joliet are eligible for discounted tuition.

Endowed scholarships for student financial assistance

  • Jack Adler Scholarship
  • Daniel and Carol Allen Memorial Scholarship
  • The Bailey Family Endowed Scholarship
  • Baratta Foundation
  • Michael Fitzgerald Brown Memorial Scholarship
  • D’Arcy Family Scholarship
  • Fr. Raymond Foster, O. Carm. Scholarship
  • The Frank Golf Endowed Scholarship in Mathematics Fund
  • Joan Hussey Scholarship
  • JCA Alumni Association Endowed Student Scholarship
  • JCA Restricted Endowed Scholarship
  • Timothy C. Klotz Memorial Scholarship
  • Korst Family Scholarship
  • The “Mammo Strong” Memorial Foundation
  • The Jack Perconte and Diana Schmitt Scholarship
  • Marcita Ley Scholarship
  • McGrath and Whalen Multiple-Sibling Family Scholarship
  • Mother Borremeo Mack Scholarship
  • Dolores R. Moran McShane Scholarship
  • Brandon Kivlin Moyer Memorial Scholarship
  • Leonard F. and Dorothy Hartmann Nasenbeny Scholarship
  • Phyllis Olsta Scholarship
  • Marie Picha Scholarship
  • Loretta Plavec Quam Scholarships
  • August and Ann Russell Scholarship
  • Scheibe Family “We Believe in Angels” Memorial Scholarship
  • Frederick W. Schmidt and Minnie Kuhn Scholarship
  • Matt Sicinski Memorial Scholarship
  • Lillian M. Tunze Memorial Scholarship
  • Zachary Vargo Memorial Scholarship
  • Vranicar Memorial Scholarship
  • Robert E. Wright Family Scholarship

For Graduating Seniors

  • Fr. Norman Werling Scholarship
  • Schmidt-Kuhn Scholarship
  • Omni-Mte Excellence in Math & Science Award

Non-endowed scholarships awarded annually:

  • 49’ers Scholarship
  • Rosemary (Boetto) DeBartolo Memorial Scholarship
  • Catholic Education Foundation Grant
  • Franciscan/Carmelite Scholarship
  • Hilltopper Scholarship
  • Jeri Hogan-Whiteside Scholarship
  • David W. Hostert Memorial Scholarship
  • The Jake Jaworski Scholarship in Honor of the Legacy of Kevin M. Hansen
  • JCHS/SFA Class of 1980 Scholarship
  • “Mammo Strong” Scholarship in Honor of Matthew Mammoser ’13                          
  • Helen McKeon Scholarship
  • Omni-Mte Scholarship
  • Omni-Mte Student Distinction in Academics & Athletics Award
  • Omni-Mte Student Distinction in Academics & Performing Arts Award
  • Andrew P. Pavletich Memorial Foundation
  • Patrick Quigley Memorial Scholarship
  • Remembering “G” Memorial Scholarship
  • Harold D. Scroggins Scholarship
  • Tom Seddon Scholarship
  • James R. Sefcik, Jr. Scholarship
  • Sr. Faith Franciscan Scholarship
  • Glenn E. Steed, Jr. Memorial Scholarship
  • Sr. Loretta Tures, OSF Memorial Scholarship
  • Maxine F. Ward Memorial Scholarship
  • “You Are What You Are Around Scholarship For Single Mothers At JCA”
    This scholarship’s intention is to help single parent homes achieve a Catholic education for their students and surround themselves with positive influences. Our goal is to have students who receive this scholarship achieve higher academic and personal achievement by association with who you are around.

Contact Information

  • For more information on tuition assistance at JCA, please contact Kris Horn, at 815.741.0500 ext. 264
  • For more information on the Catholic Education Foundation (CEF) of the Joliet Diocese, please click here.

Printable Version

  • For a printable overview of JCA’s Tuition Assistance, click here.

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