Tax Credit Scholarship Information
The Illinois tax credit scholarship, made legal in 2017 by the Invest in Kids Act, went into effect on January 2018, when St. Angela parents, and donors, were invited to sign-up to be part of the program. Whether your family can benefit from the scholarship, or you can benefit because of the tax credit, we encourage you to learn about the program.
IMPORTANT Information for Donors
There is Still Time to Donate!
In its first year the Invest in Kids Tax Credit Scholarship program awarded scholarships to more than 3,000 students from low-income families to attend a school of their choice operated by the Archdiocese of Chicago. This was made possible through the generosity of thousands of donors who took advantage of the 75% state income tax credit on their donation.
St. Angela students received tens of thousands of dollars in tax credit scholarship; some from the Empower Fund, and some from the Big Shoulders Fund.
Empower Illinois is offering a two to one match available to donors from now until February 28 -- or until funds run out. You can designate Saint Angela School as your choice. More information is available at empowerillinois.org and consider making your gift to St. Angela today -- your $500 gift becomes $1,500 in tuition assistance!
Big Shoulders has a wonderful program available that allows donors to receive a 75% tax credit while allowing our scholars to receive scholarships lowering their tuition and allowing them to attend Saint Angela! More information is available at Big Shoulders Tax Credit.

How to apply for a tax credit account with the state.
or visit www.archchicago.org/tcs
or send your questions to tcs@archchicago.org.

Information for Parents
The application process for Invest in Kids scholarships will open in January. St. Angela receives funding from two SGOs (Scholarship Granting Organizations) and parents are strongly encouraged to apply for both.
The Empower Illinois application process and the Big Shoulders Fund process will begin in January 2021. All recipients of scholarship funds this year must reapply for next year.
Big Shoulders Tax Credit Scholarship Information:
The date to apply is Tuesday, January 12, 2021 at 8:00 AM
Please click on the links for important information:
Big Shoulders Application Link
Step-One of the application opens at 8:00 am on Tuesday.
Applicants may click on the link prior to 8 am and they will see a countdown clock. The page should refresh at 8 am when the application opens for all applicants. Applicants should ensure they are using the fastest internet possible as internet speeds may affect timely access to the application. We recommend using the Google Chrome browser to complete the application.
Families may use the following numbers to reach our staff:
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Tax Credit Scholarship Hotline: 312.544.8687
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Main Line: 312.751.8337
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Spanish Hotline: 312.566.4401
Application Step-Two: After application day we will start reaching out to families with early time stamps to complete Step-Two of the application by submitting their documents.
Families should regularly check their email. Applicants have 10 days to complete Step-Two of the application once it is requested.
Please note, the completion of Step-Two is not a guarantee of a scholarship, but does move them one-step closer to a scholarship.
Learn more at https://www.bigshouldersfundsgo.org/
Big Shoulders Tax Credit Information Sheet
Big Shoulders Cheat Sheet for applying for scholarships
Empower Illinois Tax Credit Scholarship Information:
Reservation Night is Wed., January 13, 2021 at 6:30PM
Please click on the links for important information:
Empower Step by Step Instructions
If the Tax Credit Scholarship program is new to you, please follow the Read More link. Please disregard the dates, as this document introduced the program last year. The general information about TCS is the same.