Tuition Assistance

Students at St. Benilde were awarded over $350,000 in financial assistance for the 2025-2026 school year.  See below for financial aid opportunities that our students currently participate in.

These three scholarships, Aspiring Scholars, ACE, and ARETE, participate in the Tuition Donation Credit Program and are available for students entering kindergarten for the first time or entering Catholic school for the first time.  A family that qualifies for a TDC scholarship who has a child in elementary school will receive approximately $4,400 annually (nearly 70% of base tuition). Click on the programs below for specific information about the program.

Louisiana Giving All True Opportunity to Rise (LA GATOR) Scholarship Program is a new program to help families find a school that fits their child's individual needs. The program began in 2025-2026 and is for students entering Kindergarten for the first time or Kindergarten to 7th grade students entering Catholic school for the first time. Click on the LA GATOR link below for specific information about the program.

Click here for Aspiring Scholars website.

For the 2026-2027 application season, applications opened on February 3rd. Please remember that scholarships are awarded on a first-come, first-served basis, and an application is not complete unless all required documents are submitted. A completed application does not guarantee a scholarship. If you have any questions, please email [email protected].

Click here for ACE website.

The 2026-2027 student application for new and returning ACE families opened on Monday, February 2nd, 2026. Applications will close on Tax Day, April 15, at 11:59 p.m. in the time zone of the school. Detailed information including updated income eligibility guidelines will be provided in late January. Additionally, important information for parents can be found in our help center.

The Archdiocese of New Orleans established the Champions of Catholic Education Tuition Assistance Fund in 2015 through the Office of Catholic Schools and The Catholic Foundation. The fund provides tuition assistance for families wanting to send their school-aged children to Catholic schools within the archdiocese and who, without financial assistance, would be unable to do so. While almost all schools offer some type of financial assistance, those resources do not meet the need of all students who request aid. The Champions of Catholic Educations Fund exists to help fill that gap. Though it is impossible to make Catholic schools "more affordable", it is possible to make a Catholic education more accessible and available to those who truly want to benefit from attending a Catholic school. 

We are ever grateful for your commitment to our schools and always appreciative that you chose Catholic education for your family.  

Applications for the 2026-2027 school year are currently being accepted. For more information about applying for the Champions of Catholic Education Tuition Assistance Fund, please contact Ingrid Fields in the Office of Catholic Schools at (504) 861-6225 or click here for the Champions of Education webpage. 

To become a Champion of Catholic Education for students in a New Orleans Catholic School, you can make a gift online here or contact The Catholic Foundation at (504) 596-3045. 

The Archidiocese of New Olreans' Hispanic Apostolate has established the St. Thomas Aquinas Fund with the purpose of serving Hispanic Families whose children are receiving Catholic Education; we all know that providing a quality education for their children is a top priority for many Catholic families. A Catholic education filled with academic rigor and moral guidelines has proven to be a key stepping-stone to college, a future career and molding a child into someone who has a zeal for helping others.
 
Often, however, families experience hardships and have to choose between basic needs such as food and housing or paying for Catholic elementary or high school tuition for their children.  The Hispanic Apostolate has recognized this need to help parents financially with tuition-assistance scholarships. This endowment is funded mostly by an annual gala and other private donations. 

Contact our Registrar & Bursar, Mrs. Suzzan Defourneaux, in order for St. Benilde to apply on your behalf for this scholarship with the Archdiocese of New Orleans.

Students with disabilities in some school districts may be eligible for the School Choice Program, which provides families with tuition assistance to attend eligible participating schools that offer special needs programs. Students wishing to attend a nonpublic school in parishes with a population of 190,000 or more are eligible for this program, which includes Caddo, Calcasieu, East Baton Rouge, Jefferson, Lafayette, Orleans and St.Tammany. Participating private schools must be eligible to receive state funding. 

Tuition assistance is 50% of the state per pupil funding for the student's school district (approximately $2,500) and cannot exceed the cost of the private school tuition. Families are responsible for paying the difference if tuition exceeds that amount.

The application for the 2026-27 School Choice Program is open from Febraury 5 to March 8 on the Louisiana Believes website.  

Click here for School Choice Program for Students with Exceptionalities website.
Click here for FAQ guide.

Each year St. Benilde School awards families tuition assistance based on a completed application through our FACTS tuition payment and managment system.  Completing a tuition assistance application through FACTS does not guarantee an award will be granted.  For additional information regarding the St. Benilde Scholarship Fund, please contact our Registrar and Bursar, Mrs. Suzzan Defourneaux, at [email protected].  

Please note that St. Benilde only accepts tuition assistance applications for students entering Kindergarten through 7th Grade.  Applications are accepted annually from April 15th to June 1st for the following school year.  Families who receive an Aspiring Scholars, ACE, or ARETE scholarship should not apply for tuition assistance through the St. Benilde Scholarship Fund.

Click here to sign-in to your FACTS account and apply for financial aid.