August 3, 2025 • 12 mins
We spoke with Director Cindy Howard with the Foundation for the Advancement of Catholic schools (FACS) about the Annual FORE FACS Golf Classic.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Good morning. Thank you for listening to Community Access. My
guest today is Cynthia Howard. She is executive director of
FACTS or Foundation for the Advancement of Catholic Schools.
Speaker 2 (00:09):
Good morning, Good morning, Alison, thank you for having me today.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
It's my pleasure. I'm a Catholic schoolgirl.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
Oh well, then you understand the basics and what a
great education one receives in a Catholic school.
Speaker 1 (00:22):
It's true, and I did attend public school as well,
but yes I did, my children did, and we all
say college wasn't that hard because we had such an
amazing foundation from Catholic school.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
Most certainly, the schools prepare students so well so by
the time they do get into college, they're comfortable, they
can handle the course load, no new surprises, and they're
prepared not only with academics, but they have wherewithal to
contribute to the community, have manners, they're respectful, just such
(00:59):
a bright out look on life. Honestly, the students are
so great. I welcome anyone to go into a Catholic
school and see what's happening today.
Speaker 1 (01:08):
I agree with you. So tell us about how did
the Foundation for the Advancement of Catholic schools come about.
Speaker 2 (01:15):
Way back in nineteen eighty two, so over forty two
years ago a group of very dedicated lay people and
clergy got together and discussed ways that they could support
the Catholic schools in our area. And it was under
Superintendent James Finelli. Father Finelli was a real advocate of
(01:37):
Catholic schools and under Archbishop Whalen, So in nineteen eighty three,
the Foundation for the Advancement of Catholic Schools was incorporated
and the mission is to provide scholarships and help with
other projects, but mainly it's scholarship assistants to students of
all faiths who attend Catholic schools throughout the entire Archdiocese
(02:02):
of Hartford, so that includes Hartford County, Litchfield County, and
New Haven County.
Speaker 1 (02:07):
And how are you able to provide this?
Speaker 2 (02:10):
In two ways? First of all, we have a very
dedicated board of trustees who work very hard to raise funds,
as does our staff here. We raise funds by going
out there into our communities talking about what facts does.
We also have two events per year. One is a
big Saint Patrick's Day breakfast. We're famous for that. We
(02:33):
just celebrated our twenty fifth year of having that breakfast,
and I encourage your viewers to go to that. There's
also a golf event, which we'll talk about shortly. But
then we also have many people who have become donors
to facts, not only one time donors, but also they
have started their own endowed funds, their own scholarship fund
(02:54):
in their family's name, and they have various criteria that
we follow. So we have several different funds within our portfolio,
and we follow the donors directive. So for example, there
might be a donor that says, I'd like to give
to a student who resides in the Farmington, Connecticut area,
or I'd like to give to a student who is
(03:16):
of Italian descent. Whatever the criteria is, we follow. Some
want a set amount of a scholarship that goes out
every year, and some allows us to use only the
income from the fund. But some of the funds are
very large, so like we have one fund in particular
that helps any student who's a resident of Hartford, and
(03:37):
there are residents of Hartford that attend many different schools,
not you know, it's not specific to the city of Hartford.
There might be residents of Hartford that attend Northwest Catholic
Saint Thomas the Apostle, Saint Timothy's Corpus Christi. So those
scholarships go to each one of those students, and they're
quite substantial.
Speaker 1 (03:56):
How strong is the need for children to need assistants
in order to pay for Catholic school.
Speaker 2 (04:02):
That's a really good question, because there are many families
that can afford tuition, and when you look at the
couition costs of private education, Catholic schools are a real bargain.
But at any rate, there are families that can afford it,
but there are many families who cannot. They struggle just
meeting their own basic needs. Yet they yearn to provide
(04:25):
their children a strong start in life by attending a
Catholic school. And that's where facts comes in. So we're
able to award that student a scholarship that makes all
the difference in the world as to whether or not
they can attend. And I can tell you that it
means so much to these families. Many of these families struggle,
and there are also many middle class families who you know,
(04:48):
it's getting harder and harder for the middle class to
afford things and afford tuition, but they want this type
of education. And I think I may have mentioned this
to you before. Over twenty percent of the students in
Ethic schools are not Catholic, so our scholarships are non discriminatory.
Speaker 1 (05:05):
You mentioned some of the criteria why the students receive scholarships,
but is there a particular age who is eligible?
Speaker 2 (05:14):
So good question too. Our scholarships are primarily for elementary
schools and high schools, the primary and secondary education. We
do have a couple of scholarships that are awarded to
students going off to a college. They have specific criteria
though one for example, it has to be a student
graduating from a Catholic high school, going to a college
(05:36):
and majoring in business. So that's how that was set
up many years ago. But it's primarily elementary schools and
high schools that our scholarships go to.
Speaker 1 (05:46):
Can you share some success stories with me where students
receive scholarships and how it impacted their lives?
Speaker 2 (05:52):
Oh? Yes, One of the most touching moments we had
this year, as a matter of fact, was from a
student Sudent named Haley who attends East Catholic High School
and you know, she said to us, the day I
walked into East Catholic High School, I instantly knew how
life changing the school is going to be for me.
The learning environment created here has made it so I
(06:15):
can participate in any activity. She went on to say
how she was very hesitant prior to this to put
herself out there to join clubs, to you know, pursue
her career desires, but she felt at the school that
it gives her content support as well as the opportunity
to meet other students. It's been so inspiring to her
(06:38):
and that she wouldn't have been able to make it
without a scholarship. There have been other families who, you know,
we've heard have struggled. I may have mentioned to you
there was a student that came from a family who's
who were eating rice and eggs for months, the principal
told us, because that's all they can afford. Now there
(07:02):
are students that there was one student a few years
ago that walked several miles a day to attend his
Catholic high school in Bristol Saint Paul's. I mean, there's
all kinds of stories. Frankly, some of the stories are
very heavy when we read the applications because there are
(07:22):
a lot of people struggling out there. There are a
lot of children from single family homes. The parents may
be ill, the grandparents may be raising the child. You know,
there's so many needs and facts quite simply does not
have enough funding to meet all of the needs because
(07:42):
the applications continue to increase every year. So I wish
we had enough money to help everyone that applied here.
Some of the stories would curl your hair, as they said,
it's heavy work sometimes, but it's also so rewarding because
we're the ones that were you know, the thank yous
from the students and the parents, and they're eternally grateful.
(08:05):
And we keep in touch with some of the students
once they graduate, they'll email us. We're connected on LinkedIn.
It's great to see them become successful. So we know
our scholarships are making a difference in their lives. But
I'm encouraging your listeners to think about ways that they
could reach out to our Fax office and help a student.
(08:27):
They may want to help one particular student, or they
may want to say, you know, let me send you
a donation, and you know where the greatest needs are,
so put this where you think there's the greatest need.
We have a few donors that do that every year.
They'll send us a check and say, you know where
the greatest needs are. Give this to the students that
needs help, and we're able to find them. They're all over.
(08:51):
But the work being done in the schools, Alison, is extraordinary.
Sometimes I get the question about how are the teachers
in Catholic schools. The teachers are superb. They all have
a degree in education and they do a super job.
As I said earlier, not only with academics, but educating
the whole child, body, mind and spirit.
Speaker 1 (09:14):
You have the annual four Facts golf class to coming
up on August twenty fifth. It's going to be at
the TPC River Highlands. I was just there for the
Travelers Championship. Yes, yeah, tell us all about it.
Speaker 2 (09:27):
It's a beautiful course, isn't it.
Speaker 1 (09:29):
Oh Oh my goodness, it's so gorgeous walking in that
heath though, let me tell you.
Speaker 2 (09:33):
Yeah, I'm sure, I'm sure. But we've been praying for
perfect day. Yes, that's the plan. But our golfers have
a great time. Yes, we would love if any of
your listeners would join us. August twenty fifth. Now we
are just about full with foursomes. We have a few
individual spots open still, and we have some sponsor stop
(09:54):
spots open still, but we're going to have a nice
turnout this year. Golfers come register in the morning at
ten am. They're given lunch at eleven thirty. There's a
twelve o'clock shotgun start. Then they have cocktails and our dirvs,
then a lovely dinner buffet. We'll have some silent auction items.
We'll have loads of raffle prizes that they'd love to win.
(10:18):
But most importantly they have the camaraderie and they can
mix with the people who are there at dinner. It's
good for one's business to do that mingling and they
have a load of fun. So if someone is interested,
I would suggest they call the Fax office. So I'll
give you the number. It's eight six zero three two
(10:38):
five five zero nine six. And they can also look
us up online at our website which is fax Hartford
dot org. Facts is FS and frank as an Apple
Season Charlie ss and Sam Hartford dot org.
Speaker 1 (10:57):
And there's other ways to give, including planned giving.
Speaker 2 (11:01):
Yes, yes, we're always willing to talk to a donor
about plan giving. You know, so many times we work
hard our whole life and we save and we save,
and then we plan to retire, and then we you know,
we say, do we have a will and order? And
what will happen to all of our assets once we pass?
(11:21):
Will it go to our family? Will it go to
a charitable organization? Bequest more important to us as well.
Speaker 1 (11:29):
I'm speaking with Cynthia Howard. She is executive director at
the Foundation for the Advancement of Catholic Schools or FACTS again.
You can go to FACTS Hartford dot org. That's FACS
Hartford dot org. The annual Four Facts Golf Classic is
August twenty fifth. Please make a donation and attend if
you can. Thank you so much for being here today
(11:50):
and for serving the community.
Speaker 2 (11:52):
Allison, it's my pleasure. Thank you very much. I appreciate
all the efforts on your part, and we hope we
hear from some of your listeners out there.
Good morning. Thank you for listening to Community Access. My
guest today is Cynthia Howard. She is executive director of
FACTS or Foundation for the Advancement of Catholic Schools.
Speaker 2 (00:09):
Good morning, Good morning, Alison, thank you for having me today.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
It's my pleasure. I'm a Catholic schoolgirl.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
Oh well, then you understand the basics and what a
great education one receives in a Catholic school.
Speaker 1 (00:22):
It's true, and I did attend public school as well,
but yes I did, my children did, and we all
say college wasn't that hard because we had such an
amazing foundation from Catholic school.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
Most certainly, the schools prepare students so well so by
the time they do get into college, they're comfortable, they
can handle the course load, no new surprises, and they're
prepared not only with academics, but they have wherewithal to
contribute to the community, have manners, they're respectful, just such
(00:59):
a bright out look on life. Honestly, the students are
so great. I welcome anyone to go into a Catholic
school and see what's happening today.
Speaker 1 (01:08):
I agree with you. So tell us about how did
the Foundation for the Advancement of Catholic schools come about.
Speaker 2 (01:15):
Way back in nineteen eighty two, so over forty two
years ago a group of very dedicated lay people and
clergy got together and discussed ways that they could support
the Catholic schools in our area. And it was under
Superintendent James Finelli. Father Finelli was a real advocate of
(01:37):
Catholic schools and under Archbishop Whalen, So in nineteen eighty three,
the Foundation for the Advancement of Catholic Schools was incorporated
and the mission is to provide scholarships and help with
other projects, but mainly it's scholarship assistants to students of
all faiths who attend Catholic schools throughout the entire Archdiocese
(02:02):
of Hartford, so that includes Hartford County, Litchfield County, and
New Haven County.
Speaker 1 (02:07):
And how are you able to provide this?
Speaker 2 (02:10):
In two ways? First of all, we have a very
dedicated board of trustees who work very hard to raise funds,
as does our staff here. We raise funds by going
out there into our communities talking about what facts does.
We also have two events per year. One is a
big Saint Patrick's Day breakfast. We're famous for that. We
(02:33):
just celebrated our twenty fifth year of having that breakfast,
and I encourage your viewers to go to that. There's
also a golf event, which we'll talk about shortly. But
then we also have many people who have become donors
to facts, not only one time donors, but also they
have started their own endowed funds, their own scholarship fund
(02:54):
in their family's name, and they have various criteria that
we follow. So we have several different funds within our portfolio,
and we follow the donors directive. So for example, there
might be a donor that says, I'd like to give
to a student who resides in the Farmington, Connecticut area,
or I'd like to give to a student who is
(03:16):
of Italian descent. Whatever the criteria is, we follow. Some
want a set amount of a scholarship that goes out
every year, and some allows us to use only the
income from the fund. But some of the funds are
very large, so like we have one fund in particular
that helps any student who's a resident of Hartford, and
(03:37):
there are residents of Hartford that attend many different schools,
not you know, it's not specific to the city of Hartford.
There might be residents of Hartford that attend Northwest Catholic
Saint Thomas the Apostle, Saint Timothy's Corpus Christi. So those
scholarships go to each one of those students, and they're
quite substantial.
Speaker 1 (03:56):
How strong is the need for children to need assistants
in order to pay for Catholic school.
Speaker 2 (04:02):
That's a really good question, because there are many families
that can afford tuition, and when you look at the
couition costs of private education, Catholic schools are a real bargain.
But at any rate, there are families that can afford it,
but there are many families who cannot. They struggle just
meeting their own basic needs. Yet they yearn to provide
(04:25):
their children a strong start in life by attending a
Catholic school. And that's where facts comes in. So we're
able to award that student a scholarship that makes all
the difference in the world as to whether or not
they can attend. And I can tell you that it
means so much to these families. Many of these families struggle,
and there are also many middle class families who you know,
(04:48):
it's getting harder and harder for the middle class to
afford things and afford tuition, but they want this type
of education. And I think I may have mentioned this
to you before. Over twenty percent of the students in
Ethic schools are not Catholic, so our scholarships are non discriminatory.
Speaker 1 (05:05):
You mentioned some of the criteria why the students receive scholarships,
but is there a particular age who is eligible?
Speaker 2 (05:14):
So good question too. Our scholarships are primarily for elementary
schools and high schools, the primary and secondary education. We
do have a couple of scholarships that are awarded to
students going off to a college. They have specific criteria
though one for example, it has to be a student
graduating from a Catholic high school, going to a college
(05:36):
and majoring in business. So that's how that was set
up many years ago. But it's primarily elementary schools and
high schools that our scholarships go to.
Speaker 1 (05:46):
Can you share some success stories with me where students
receive scholarships and how it impacted their lives?
Speaker 2 (05:52):
Oh? Yes, One of the most touching moments we had
this year, as a matter of fact, was from a
student Sudent named Haley who attends East Catholic High School
and you know, she said to us, the day I
walked into East Catholic High School, I instantly knew how
life changing the school is going to be for me.
The learning environment created here has made it so I
(06:15):
can participate in any activity. She went on to say
how she was very hesitant prior to this to put
herself out there to join clubs, to you know, pursue
her career desires, but she felt at the school that
it gives her content support as well as the opportunity
to meet other students. It's been so inspiring to her
(06:38):
and that she wouldn't have been able to make it
without a scholarship. There have been other families who, you know,
we've heard have struggled. I may have mentioned to you
there was a student that came from a family who's
who were eating rice and eggs for months, the principal
told us, because that's all they can afford. Now there
(07:02):
are students that there was one student a few years
ago that walked several miles a day to attend his
Catholic high school in Bristol Saint Paul's. I mean, there's
all kinds of stories. Frankly, some of the stories are
very heavy when we read the applications because there are
(07:22):
a lot of people struggling out there. There are a
lot of children from single family homes. The parents may
be ill, the grandparents may be raising the child. You know,
there's so many needs and facts quite simply does not
have enough funding to meet all of the needs because
(07:42):
the applications continue to increase every year. So I wish
we had enough money to help everyone that applied here.
Some of the stories would curl your hair, as they said,
it's heavy work sometimes, but it's also so rewarding because
we're the ones that were you know, the thank yous
from the students and the parents, and they're eternally grateful.
(08:05):
And we keep in touch with some of the students
once they graduate, they'll email us. We're connected on LinkedIn.
It's great to see them become successful. So we know
our scholarships are making a difference in their lives. But
I'm encouraging your listeners to think about ways that they
could reach out to our Fax office and help a student.
(08:27):
They may want to help one particular student, or they
may want to say, you know, let me send you
a donation, and you know where the greatest needs are,
so put this where you think there's the greatest need.
We have a few donors that do that every year.
They'll send us a check and say, you know where
the greatest needs are. Give this to the students that
needs help, and we're able to find them. They're all over.
(08:51):
But the work being done in the schools, Alison, is extraordinary.
Sometimes I get the question about how are the teachers
in Catholic schools. The teachers are superb. They all have
a degree in education and they do a super job.
As I said earlier, not only with academics, but educating
the whole child, body, mind and spirit.
Speaker 1 (09:14):
You have the annual four Facts golf class to coming
up on August twenty fifth. It's going to be at
the TPC River Highlands. I was just there for the
Travelers Championship. Yes, yeah, tell us all about it.
Speaker 2 (09:27):
It's a beautiful course, isn't it.
Speaker 1 (09:29):
Oh Oh my goodness, it's so gorgeous walking in that
heath though, let me tell you.
Speaker 2 (09:33):
Yeah, I'm sure, I'm sure. But we've been praying for
perfect day. Yes, that's the plan. But our golfers have
a great time. Yes, we would love if any of
your listeners would join us. August twenty fifth. Now we
are just about full with foursomes. We have a few
individual spots open still, and we have some sponsor stop
(09:54):
spots open still, but we're going to have a nice
turnout this year. Golfers come register in the morning at
ten am. They're given lunch at eleven thirty. There's a
twelve o'clock shotgun start. Then they have cocktails and our dirvs,
then a lovely dinner buffet. We'll have some silent auction items.
We'll have loads of raffle prizes that they'd love to win.
(10:18):
But most importantly they have the camaraderie and they can
mix with the people who are there at dinner. It's
good for one's business to do that mingling and they
have a load of fun. So if someone is interested,
I would suggest they call the Fax office. So I'll
give you the number. It's eight six zero three two
(10:38):
five five zero nine six. And they can also look
us up online at our website which is fax Hartford
dot org. Facts is FS and frank as an Apple
Season Charlie ss and Sam Hartford dot org.
Speaker 1 (10:57):
And there's other ways to give, including planned giving.
Speaker 2 (11:01):
Yes, yes, we're always willing to talk to a donor
about plan giving. You know, so many times we work
hard our whole life and we save and we save,
and then we plan to retire, and then we you know,
we say, do we have a will and order? And
what will happen to all of our assets once we pass?
(11:21):
Will it go to our family? Will it go to
a charitable organization? Bequest more important to us as well.
Speaker 1 (11:29):
I'm speaking with Cynthia Howard. She is executive director at
the Foundation for the Advancement of Catholic Schools or FACTS again.
You can go to FACTS Hartford dot org. That's FACS
Hartford dot org. The annual Four Facts Golf Classic is
August twenty fifth. Please make a donation and attend if
you can. Thank you so much for being here today
(11:50):
and for serving the community.
Speaker 2 (11:52):
Allison, it's my pleasure. Thank you very much. I appreciate
all the efforts on your part, and we hope we
hear from some of your listeners out there.
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