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Tuition and fees

Our goal is to ensure the many benefits of a Catholic education

Our goal is to ensure that the many benefits of a Catholic education are accessible and available to children and families who value a Catholic education while we try to maintain and attract high caliber teachers. Therefore, families who feel the tuition is out of their reach should go through FACTS Grant & Aid.

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2024-2025 school year

Tuition Breakdown by Age

The Qualified Catholic tuition rate for Kindergarten through 8th grade will be charged based on the student’s Roman Catholic Baptism Certificate and registration in a Catholic parish.

Kindergarten - 8th grade

Tier 1 Tuition
$8,912
Tier 2 Tuition (Qualified Catholic Rate)
$8,783
Financial Assistance Available

Pre-School Classes

Toddler (2 mornings)
$2,747
Toddler (4 mornings)
$4,047
Preschool
$4,354
Pre-Kindergarten
$5,468

Additional Fees

Many families make great sacrifices daily to send their children to Catholic schools. Meanwhile many generous donors in the St. Ambrose parish through Catholic Foundation and the monthly collections and donors to J.E. Cosgriff Memorial Catholic School through the annual appeal and fundraisers provides us with support.

Application Fee
$25
Toddler/Preschool/Pre-K Enrollment
$200
Kindergarten-8th Grade Enrollment
$400
Graduation (8th)
$150

Financial Assistance

FACTS Grant & Aid

FACTS Grant & Aid will help take into account your income, core expenses, family size, and number of children in Catholic schools. For a $40 fee paid to FACTS, a family provides financial information, and FACTS will provide analyzed data and a recommendation to J.E. Cosgriff to help determine a feasible tuition amount. The St. Ambrose Pastor and the school administration makes the final decision. Please click the link below to apply.

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Frequently asked questions

Financial questions from parents

How is tuition determined for our schools?

A diocesan committee comprised of principals, the superintendent, the associate superintendent, and staff with financial expertise propose tuition levels for the schools. The proposal is then given to the Bishop for his approval.

How are teacher salaries determined?

Prior to 2008, teachers were on a traditional teacher’s pay scale. Since the financial crisis in 2008, teachers in our system were given minimal raises because tuition levels were not increased proportionally. These minimal increases did not keep up with the cost of living. Recently, teachers in the diocese have been placed back on a scale.

I have heard that Catholic school teachers make more money than public school teachers, because they work in a private school. Is this true?

No. Most teachers and principals in our system make less than their public school and private school counterparts. This is because we are a tuition driven system and teacher salaries are determined by the amount of tuition we can charge.

Why did the tuition scale add an additional tier for the 2018-2019 school year?

The cost tier, or tier 1, was added to the scale this year to show the real cost a school incurs to educate a student in our school.  This average amount had not been calculated since 2008. Therefore, no family has been required to pay the cost to educate a student in our system since 2008. Thus, this tier was calculated so that the tuition scale could reflect the true cost to educate a student.

Why are parents now being asked to pay the cost when the system has gotten by for so many years charging parent less than it costs to educate their children?

Many of you have read or heard media reports that there is a teacher shortage in Utah and that public schools have recently increased teacher pay by as much as 10%. For example, in 2018 a starting teacher in the diocese received $30,152 while a starting teacher in the public system received approximately $41,000 on average. This low rate of pay for Catholic school teachers has kept tuition lower. If we continue this way, the wage gap between public/private and Catholic teachers will grow even greater. More importantly, we need to be able to pay our teachers a just and livable wage so that our talented teachers stay with us for many years.

Why can’t the fundraising we do go towards paying teachers more?

Our school does not make enough in fundraisers each year to pay for this needed increase in teacher salaries. Additionally, fundraising is not a reliable source of income. If we fell short in any given year, we could not pay our teachers. In reality, fundraising efforts are needed to help with the upkeep of the school such as repairing roofs, heating systems, etc., and to purchase educational materials and equipment. Most of our schools rely on fundraising to meet their operational budget.

What if I cannot pay afford to pay any of the tiers listed or what if we were already receiving a reduction in tuition?

If you feel that you cannot afford any of the tiers or you already receive a tuition reduction, you may have your tuition level evaluated by filling out a FACTS Grant and Aid Application. FACTS is a company our school uses to help the administration determine the tuition level that you can afford.

Does this FACTS Company provide the school with money to help with tuition reduction?

No. FACTS is only a tool that the school uses to determine your tuition level based on your income and size of family.

Tuition just goes up every year; I may have to remove my child from the school.

Our school will work with you to keep your children in the school.  Tuition has gone up every year. It must, in order for us to pay our teachers and staff and for us to able to hire new teachers in a competitive environment. We have always worked with families to pay what they can afford. This is still the case.

Why doesn’t the Diocese give the schools money for teachers’ salaries, or fund scholarships for students?

Currently, the Diocese annually assesses most Catholic parishes a portion of their income. This assessment goes into a fund for Catholic schools. All schools may write grants for emergency funding should a special need arise. Additional money is distributed to schools based on their financial need. The Skaggs Tuition Assistance Program also provides some financial assistance to schools for families that are below the poverty level. In order to receive this assistance, families must be referred by a principal or pastor.