Welcome to the Corner of Development at SJA

The Development office at St. John the Apostle Catholic School was founded in 2002 to help expand the base of financial support for our school through the meaningful involvement of people in our community.  The Developmental Office exists to ensure the future of our legacy; to keep a quality Catholic Education accessible to all who seek it. Traditionally, Catholic schools have relied on tuition, fundraisers and a parish subsidy to support educational costs.  With rising expenses and inflation, this approach is no longer feasible to cover all needs. To provide for students in financial need and to bridge the gap between tuition charged and the actual cost of education, SJA relies on the generosity of Foundations, Trusts, Corporations, Parishioners, families and the community.

Grant writing @ St. John the Apostle Catholic School, we write grants annually to several foundations and trusts. Grant needs change yearly, given the needs of SJA. In the past we have received grants for our Language Arts Program, Science Lab, The Global Classroom, Art, Research and Resource Library, Drama, CEEF and Tuition Assistance. Our most recent grant from the B.P., Lester and Regina John Foundation funded a large part of our Tuition need for SJA families.

Marketing SJA, the Development Department creates new family information packets to assist families in making the right choice in education when visiting SJA. We advertise in the local newspapers such as The Oregon City News, Canby Herald, The West Linn Tidings, The Clackamas Review and the Catholic Sentinel. We are members of the Oregon City Chamber of Commerce and are seen in the Metro Parent along with being rated as a top school in the Portland Monthly magazine. The Development Department creates school brochures, SJA's Annual report and press releases for school events. We also host several community building events such as our Annual Open House, Grandparents day and Pizza Bingo.

Fundraising @ SJA, the Development Department coordinates the school fundraising events with our wonderful parent volunteers. To raise awareness and funds, the Development Department organizes and holds several events each year.

Development planned giving program, SJA has a Catholic Education Endowment Fund (CEEF)and encourages supporters to remember the Parish and School in their estate plans. CEEF is a perpetual trust established in 1986. Formed as a non-profit organization, CEEF provides additional growth for the SJA Catholic education programs. Contributions to the CEEF are treated differently from other contributions. These gifts are not spent on immediate needs. Rather funds are placed in an investment trust.