With the cost of private, college prep high school education increasing an estimated 4.5 percent this year, the St. Louis NativityMiguel Scholarship Fund Dinner is setting its sights on tuition assistance for underprivileged students while honoring Archbishop Robert J. Carlson. The June 6, 2012 fundraiser will raise money to help pay high school tuition for more than 300 graduates of seven NativityMiguel schools. More than 96 percent of NativityMiguel graduates attend college prep high schools. The dinner will salute Archbishop Carlson, a proponent of improving education in poor neighborhoods, and the more than 100 students graduating from NativityMiguel middle schools this year.

The June 6, 2012 fundraiser will be held from 6 p.m. to 9p.m. at the Chase Park Plaza Khorassan Ballroom at 212 N. Kingshighway Boulevard.

“Our students, most of whom qualify for free- and reduced-cost meals program, need financial help to attend St. Louis’ very best high schools,” said Tom Nolan, executive director of ACCESS Academies, a not-for-profit organization that supports NativityMiguel education in St. Louis and organizes the fundraiser. “Having completed the rigorous NativityMiguel middle school, tuition support is essential to advance the momentum of education at our finest college prep high schools to help our graduates realize the dream of college.”

The NativityMiguel education model features a rigorous middle school academic program to prepare students for success in college-prep high schools. The model includes a 10-hour school day, a 10-1/2-month school year, mandatory parental involvement and a demanding curriculum. 

The fundraiser benefits the graduates of Central Catholic Academy, De La Salle Middle School, Marian Middle School, Loyola Academy, Most Holy Trinity Academy, St. Cecilia Academy, and the Academy at King of Glory Lutheran School, which closed in 2011 but still has graduates in high school. 

Archbishop Carlson, nearing the end of his third year as head of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of St. Louis, has been a strong supporter of Catholic education, emphasizing the need to make quality education available for all students, regardless of religious affiliation. He has launched a new effort -– the Mission Advancement Initiative – aimed at improving Catholic schools, ensuring their performance and stability. He will be honored for his work on behalf of students from low-income families.

Funds raised at the event will bridge the gap between the cost of private, college prep high schools and the tuition available from each student’s family, the financial aid provided by the 20 participating high schools, and the high school scholarships provided to each student by his or her NativityMiguel school. 

Tickets are $250 per person ($2,000 for a table of eight) and can be obtained by contacting Nolan at 314-898-0430 or nolant@accessacademies.org.