SFHS Impact Report: 2021-22

IMPACT REPORT

Fiscal Year 2021-2022

Dear Friends of Saint Francis,

This past year has brought so many blessings to Saint Francis High School, and we are deeply grateful for the remarkable support we have received from our community. The pages of this report reflect the direct impact of our generous benefactors, as well as the grateful words of students, educators and alumni who have been impacted by your gifts. We hope that you enjoy learning about the growth in our educational opportunities, progress made on campus, and the continued support for our students and families who are blessed to receive an outstanding Catholic, Holy Cross education at Saint Francis.

Blessed Basil Moreau, the founder of the congregation of Holy Cross, shared unique educational philosophies to form the hearts and minds of students. Saint Francis honors Blessed Basil Moreau, his innovative spirit and the legacy of the Brothers of Holy Cross, which continues to guide us today. Like Moreau, we have a responsibility to create new opportunities to prepare and educate our students to be leaders of impact and vision. Your contributions help us embrace this opportunity with hope and zeal.

We recently celebrated the opening of the Eggers Innovation Center, an important milestone in the strategic plan for our school and the Light the Way campaign. This beautiful facility is the result of years of dreaming, planning, hard work and sacrifice. Our community is able to benefit from the Eggers Innovation Center now because of the visionary leadership of those who came before us, and all our benefactors who continue to commit to our school’s mission. Your gifts today both shape our current students and make it possible for us to plan for an exciting future for our school community.

Your contributions help make Saint Francis the special and extraordinary place it is and enable us to dream about an exciting future for our students. Thank you for affirming our efforts in furthering our Holy Cross mission and ministry.

Gratefully,

Jason D. Curtis President

Fiscal Year 2021-22 Giving

We are proud to report another year of strong support from our donors whose contributions help us fulfill our mission of forming students in the Holy Cross tradition.

Fiscal Year Giving $8.52M

Fiscal Year

Donors

1,328 Fiscal Year Gifts

6,317

GIVING FROM SPECIFIC CONSTITUENTS

Current parents contributed $1,293,999

Alumni contributed $5,895,490

Educators contributed $100,542

Friends of Saint Francis contributed $408,868

Past parents and grandparents contributed $346,659

SAINT FRANCIS FUND 2021-2022 OVERVIEW

The Saint Francis Fund helps to support all the essential elements that make Saint Francis a special place to receive an education. From academic support, student activities, spiritual engagement, technology and tuition assistance, the Saint Francis Fund supports it all. But perhaps more importantly, the Saint Francis Fund assures that every student has the opportunity to participate in all programs at Saint Francis.

Giving Tuesday 2021:

$490,323

518 Gifts

TOTAL CONTRIBUTIONS

$1,319,318

1,454 Gifts

Founders Day 2022:

$197,309

247 Gifts

Giving Tuesday

Founders Day

IMPACT OF OUR GIVING DAYS 247

gifts from alumni, educators, grandparents, friends and students

518 gifts from 442 donors added up to $490,323

82% of gifts were under $1,000

13% of gifts were under $100

82% 30%

$197,309 for the Saint Francis Fund and Alumni Class Endowed Scholarships of gifts were under $1,000 of gifts were under $100

Groups Represented

53 student and alumni classes

24 clubs

17 sports teams

Every Gift Matters, Every Gift Counts - Thank you!

STORIES OF IMPACT

How your gifts to the Saint Francis Fund are making a difference for students and educators

IMMERSIONS

Immersion experiences enable students to translate action into the world through learning opportunities on the economic, political, social, historical and cultural factors that contribute to injustice locally and globally. These experiences, which take place in varied locations such as New Orleans, Puerto Rico and Peru, encourage students to consider how they can use their hearts and minds to serve the world.

Helen Corbett ’23

“The immersion on a Native American reservation in Pine Ridge, S.D., changed me by showing me how to live simply. I heard firsthand experiences and stories from people, and the amazing culture, traditions and artwork have stuck with me. Some of the other immersion members and I want to spread awareness and knowledge we acquired to our community.”

8 STUDENT AND 23 ADULT LEADERS SERVED

81 STUDENTS SERVED LOCAL AND GLOBAL COMMUNITIES ON

11 IMMERSION TRIPS IN 2021-22

ATHLETICS

Our student-athletes compete with a mindset of exceptional effort, teamwork and sportsmanship, making lifelong friendships and learning life lessons.

1,348 ATHLETES

PARTICIPATED ON 68 TEAMS

ACROSS 27 SPORTS IN 2021-22

NAMED THE CALIFORNIA 2021-22 STATE SCHOOL OF THE YEAR BY CALHISPORTS.COM

“Collaboration, teamwork, compassion — this is what being a Lancer is all about. My Saint Francis coaches made it more than a team. They made it a family. I coach because I want my players to have a similar positive experience that comes from a female coach.”

Sophia Bernal ’17 assistant coach, girls lacrosse

RETREATS

An integral part of the spiritual development of all Holy Cross students, retreats give students an opportunity to remove themselves from an everyday routine to reflect, pray and connect with their peers. The experiences encourage students to experience God’s presence more deeply by entering a sacred time and space.

Liz Franco ’93 associate campus minister

“Retreats help students connect with peers on a deeper level, to think and talk about things they wouldn’t talk about ordinarily. They make new friends and allow their hearts to open up, which gives them permission to be vulnerable.”

225 SENIORS ATTENDED 5 SENIOR RETREATS IN 2021-22

134 JUNIORS

PARTICIPATED IN 3 JUNIOR RETREATS

AVE CRUX

The mission-driven academic and social enrichment Ave Crux summer program prepares middle schoolers for the rigors of a college preparatory high school like Saint Francis and builds academic confidence, self-esteem and resilience. Need-based applicants, who are also prospective firstgeneration college students, are admitted as fifth-, sixth- or seventh-grade students. The program provides hands-on instruction in English, math and science and afternoon enrichment activities.

Keala Keanaaina Ave Crux director

“We are engaged in a labor of love to prove an authentic experience and a culture and community of care on our campus for our Ave Crux students and their families. Ave Crux is dedicated to building relationships of trust and creating meaningful connections that will provide our families access and a pathway to attend a college preparatory high school like Saint Francis.”

56 STUDENTS ATTENDED IN SUMMER 2021 FROM 12 DIFFERENT BAY AREA MIDDLE SCHOOLS

CLUBS AND ACTIVITIES

Our clubs and activities from entrepreneurship to robotics allow students to discover who they are, establish a sense of community and develop leadership skills.

Ava Goumas ’22 who was involved in Family Club, Spirit Squad and TEDx

“My decision to return as an alumna to Saint Francis and begin a program to mentor those leading existing Saint Francis programs on how to make their respective programs more purposeful, innovative and inclusive is rooted in my desire to give back to the community that has provided me such rich leadership experiences. I left Saint Francis a strong leader with a selfconfidence I wish for many others.”

100+ CLUBS AND ACTIVITIES INCLUDING AFFINITY AND PERFORMANCE GROUPS

TUITION ASSISTANCE

Our goal for students who receive needsbased tuition assistance is that they enjoy the full Lancer experience and have every opportunity to engage in programs and activities. Tuition assistance covers additional fees that families incur and exists beyond the initial grant that families receive.

A Saint Francis parent after receiving tuition assistance

“Thank you for all your amazing support, understanding and assistance. I am so incredibly grateful and appreciative to the entire Saint Francis community for allowing my daughter to continue and follow through with her education and experience through graduation.”

$4,373,188 TOTAL TUITION ASSISTANCE INCLUDING SUPPORT FOR TEXTBOOKS, LUNCH PROGRAM, EXTRACURRICULARS AND MORE

383 STUDENTS BENEFITED FROM SAINT FRANCIS TUITION ASSISTANCE IN 2021-22

INNOVATION

Reaching out beyond the confines of our campus, the Innovation @ Saint Francis program provides students with a variety of opportunities to engage with local and global communities in a way that is inspiring, illuminating and impactful for all involved. By building strong partnerships with a vast range of individuals and organizations, students will develop relationships and explore untapped areas of discovery.

Shraddha Chaplot head of Innovation @ Saint Francis

“Our students are making decisions on their own on how to spend their time, and they’re choosing to learn about topics they are curious about. Our teenagers cannot be what they cannot see, so my goal with Innovation @ Saint Francis is to bring as much of what’s happening in the real world and share with students how they are a part of it.”

96 STUDENTS COMPLETED 11 PROJECTS IN HEALTH CARE, SUSTAINABILITY AND MORE

HOLY CROSS INTERN AND TEACHING FELLOW PROGRAM

This program brings back recent college graduates who wish to explore careers in education. Interns work as mentors, shadow teachers and counselors, and explore additional departments on campus as career interests arise. Interns may continue as fellows, in which they teach classes and work with a coteacher and a mentor teacher. Interns and fellows receive a stipend, and fellows receive aid from Saint Francis to cover a portion of the cost of pursuing a credential.

Courtney Ogren ’16 Holy Cross Fellow

“This has always been my happy place, and I had such a great experience here. I’m getting a Catholic master’s in teaching and a teaching credential in math. I am so grateful to be back. I say to my students that I hope they have just as good or more of an amazing experience than I did.”

16 INTERNS AND FELLOWS OVER THE LAST 5 YEARS; 6 CONTINUE TO SUPPORT CATHOLIC EDUCATION

Campaign Progress: $65.5M Number of Donors: 4,289

of Gifts: 19,852

Barry and Meredith Eggers

Generous in spirit as well as in their leadership and resources, Barry and Meredith Eggers continue to make an impact at Saint Francis. Their gift to the Light the Way campaign provides tuition assistance, enhanced educator support and building improvements that provide new spaces for learning and community interaction.

Continued on page 17

sfhs.com/impactreport

Students exploring the Eggers Innovation Center for the first time.

Adarsh Gupta ’23 and students take Congresswoman Anna Eshoo on a tour.

The Innovation Theater, designed to have flexible configurations, has held many gatherings, including a Lancer Hacks hackathon presentation, above.

As longtime supporters of Saint Francis, the Eggers remain committed to championing innovative ways of meeting the needs of its students. In just a short time since its opening in January, the Eggers Innovation Center has sparked opportunities of collaboration and creativity.

“After the Snapchat investment, it was clear that the leadership of Saint Francis was willing to do something truly innovative to take Catholic high school education where it has never gone before. For this reason, it was an easy decision for us to make our gift to the Light the Way campaign,” Barry said.

Barry and Meredith consider their gift as an invitation for more individuals to partner with Saint Francis. The mission to educate in the Holy Cross tradition — giving students the tools they need to solve complex problems in an ever-changing world — is timely, urgent yet rewarding. The Eggers call for more collaborators to come alongside Saint Francis to share their talents and gifts. “Just as the Innovation Center was designed to be a place where collaboration among students, educators and partners thrive, we encourage members of the community to support the campaign and be part of this exciting journey,” Barry said.

Students in a chemistry lab.

It’s easy to make connections in the Eggers Innovation Center. This space welcomes all!

Bishop Patrick Joseph McGrath, bishop emeritus of the Diocese of San Jose, blesses the Eggers Innovation Center.

Students find many reasons to gather in the Eggers Innovation Center, including for a game of chess. After all, learning takes place in many ways.

Saint Francis High School

Institutional Advancement

1885 Miramonte Ave

Mountain View CA 94040-4098

sfhs.com/givinglight