In yet another effort to keep focused on the future, and to ensure that Catholic Education remains alive and well, St. Gregory’s Parish School has once again utilized its partnership with Mercyhurst College which dates back to 2004.

The duo will now offer what’s called the “St. Gregory-Mercy Scholarship”.

“Five years ago, we put our resources together to stabilize St. Gregory’s,” said Dr. Phillip Belfiore, Vice President for Academic Affairs at Mercyhurt. “We are hoping that this new scholarship will go one step further in actually growing the school’s enrollment.”

So what is the scholarship, you ask.

“Typically, colleges provide scholarships for athletics and academics,” explains St. Gregory Principal, Nancy Pierce. “The Mercy Scholarship is a scholarship for faith. It says that if you make a long-term commitment to Catholic Schools, from grade school through high school, then the college will reward that commitment with scholarship money.”

The scholarship will be offered to students when they enroll in Level 1 (Grades 1 and 2) at St. Gregory’s Parish School. Those students who go on to graduate from St. Gregory’s will then have to complete four years at Mercyhurst Preparatory School. And finally, those who are accepted at Mercyhurst College will qualify for an annual 75 percent tuition reduction.

“And you have to remember,” Pierce adds. “Mercyhurst College is a private school. So the scholarship discount is applied to the balance owed after financial aid deductions and other scholarships are applied.”

For example, if annual tuition and fees are $25,000 and the student qualifies for $12,000 in financial aid, the balance owed would be $13,000.  The scholarship would be valued at 75 percent of $13,000 or $9,750, and the student would owe the college $3,250.

Such a program has received national recognition. Dr. Karen Ristau, president of the National Catholic Educational Association, said she believes the St. Gregory-Mercy Scholarship is precedent-setting. And Dr. Richard A. Yanikoski, president and CEO of the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities, said, “This is a very creative program; I know of no other like it in the country.”

Rev. Nicholas J. Rouch, the Erie Diocese’s Vicar for Education, said he, too, is optimistic about the program’s possibilities. “What I like is that it encourages continuity in Catholic education and also recognizes the sacrifices made by parents who remain committed to a Catholic education K-16,” he said.

In yet another effort to keep focused on the future, and to ensure that Catholic Education remains alive and well, St. Gregory’s Parish School has once again utilized its partnership with Mercyhurst College which dates back to 2004.

The duo will now offer what’s called the “St. Gregory-Mercy Scholarship”.

“Five years ago, we put our resources together to stabilize St. Gregory’s,” said Dr. Phillip Belfiore, Vice President for Academic Affairs at Mercyhurt. “We are hoping that this new scholarship will go one step further in actually growing the school’s enrollment.”

So what is the scholarship, you ask.

“Typically, colleges provide scholarships for athletics and academics,” explains St. Gregory Principal, Nancy Pierce. “The Mercy Scholarship is a scholarship for faith. It says that if you make a long-term commitment to Catholic Schools, from grade school through high school, then the college will reward that commitment with scholarship money.”

The scholarship will be offered to students when they enroll in Level 1 (Grades 1 and 2) at St. Gregory’s Parish School. Those students who go on to graduate from St. Gregory’s will then have to complete four years at Mercyhurst Preparatory School. And finally, those who are accepted at Mercyhurst College will qualify for an annual 75 percent tuition reduction.

“And you have to remember,” Pierce adds. “Mercyhurst College is a private school. So the scholarship discount is applied to the balance owed after financial aid deductions and other scholarships are applied.”

For example, if annual tuition and fees are $25,000 and the student qualifies for $12,000 in financial aid, the balance owed would be $13,000.  The scholarship would be valued at 75 percent of $13,000 or $9,750, and the student would owe the college $3,250.

Such a program has received national recognition. Dr. Karen Ristau, president of the National Catholic Educational Association, said she believes the St. Gregory-Mercy Scholarship is precedent-setting. And Dr. Richard A. Yanikoski, president and CEO of the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities, said, “This is a very creative program; I know of no other like it in the country.”

Rev. Nicholas J. Rouch, the Erie Diocese’s Vicar for Education, said he, too, is optimistic about the program’s possibilities. “What I like is that it encourages continuity in Catholic education and also recognizes the sacrifices made by parents who remain committed to a Catholic education K-16,” he said.