Faithful. Strong. Growing. Building Campaign
Faithful. Strong. Growing.
St. Stephen of Hungary School (SSHS) is a remarkably successful urban Catholic school. St. Stephen has stood tall for over 90 years, even as other Catholic schools around the country are challenged by falling enrollment and rising costs. Faithful, Strong and Growing, our school, St. Stephen of Hungary, stands apart as a model for Catholic education.
To meet growing space requirements, Saint Stephen has embarked on a historic initiative to steward the gift of the Francis Building, and renovate and repurpose our school buildings to house our strong enrollment and enhance our students’ learning environment. To support our plans, we launched our Faithful. Strong. Growing. Building Campaign in the spring of 2020 with a special blessing from His Eminence Timothy Cardinal Dolan.
Thanks to the generosity of our parish family, the Saint Stephen of Hungary School Foundation, and several very generous individual donors, we have received over $2.8M to complete key aspects of Phase 1 of our building campaign projects that allowed us to provide on-site instruction 5 days per week in September 2020, despite the formidable restrictions of the pandemic. These renovations included: providing a safer school entrance, 4 new classrooms, updated outdoor play space, and a variety of infrastructure improvements.
We invite you to learn more and to join with other members of our community to achieve our Phase 2 goal to build four additional classrooms, a rooftop play and learning area above the Francis Building and to add specialized program space for fine arts, writing and digital literacy, Makerspace for robotic and a science laboratory in the main school building.
For additional information, please contact:
Lisa D'Ambrosio
Director of Advancement
St. Stephen of Hungary School
408 East 82nd Street
New York, NY 10028
212-288-1989
Philanthropy at Saint Stephen of Hungary School
The Saint Stephen of Hungary School and the SSHS Foundation are actively raising funds to support the school’s current and future plans and the many students who will benefit from them. Both efforts are vital to our school and participation in both is greatly appreciated.
In order to minimize possible confusion to prospective donors, please find the following explanation of both the School and Foundation’s fundraising plans.
The Faithful. Strong. Growing. Building Campaign is a significant and special fundraising initiative conducted by the school to raise substantial funding to support a major renovation and repurposing of the Saint Stephen school buildings. It will allow us to provide much-needed classroom and program space for our current and growing school enrollment. Gifts and pledges go directly to the school to pay for our construction, which will be fulfilled in phases. Prospective donors will be asked for a meaningful major pledge or gift that goes above and beyond their annual giving. Naming opportunities are offered to commemorate large donations. Schools, and other non-profits, conduct capital campaigns to fund major initiatives.
The Foundation – Raises primarily unrestricted funds through a variety of activities each year to support the difference between tuition and the cost of educating our students, for program enhancements or initiatives, or for specific needs that are identified by the Head of School and requested annually. Each year the Foundation holds a golf-outing, auction and sends an annual appeal to parents, grandparents and other friends of SSHS. This year the appeal will be for unrestricted support. The funds raised are an important part of the school’s annual operating budget, particularly in this year of extraordinary additional requirements brought about by the pandemic.
Both the building campaign and annual giving support are vital to the success of the school and are important to our future.
People can give to both based on their inclination and their capacity to contribute. Prospective donors may choose one of the following ways to give:
- Make a pledge or outright gift to the Faithful. Strong. Growing Building Campaign
- Make a direct donation to the annual campaign. We encourage and appreciate a gift at any level.
- Make a blended gift that defines a portion to be given to each
*Please note donors will be asked to participate in both.
Timing- The Foundation and the school will work together to coordinate the timing of each Ask.
The Annual fund request typically takes place before the start of the school year. However, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, several of the Foundation’s fund-raising events have been canceled and the annual appeal is being sent later than usual.
The Faithful. Strong. Growing. Building Campaign - is open to individuals interested in supporting SSHS and a growing demand for high-quality catholic education opportunities. Donation requests will be made on an individual basis throughout the year. This major donation is usually paid over a 3-year period and funds often come from an individual’s assets and matching gifts. A payment schedule is determined by the donor and is coordinated with their annual giving.