Tuition and fees cover only about 78% of what it actually costs to educate a student here—leaving an unfunded gap of about 22% for every student. Tuition does not cover program enhancements or facility improvements—it just helps keep our school running. We do not receive any government funding to operate the school.

This difference between tuition and actual cost is made up through the giving of those who truly value the life-changing impact of Greater Houlton Christian Academy. Generosity and sacrifice have been a tradition at GHCA since its founding. Although the school has grown and changed over the years, the generosity of our school family and our local community has been a constant for which we are entirely grateful.

So why give to the Academy?

• You are making it possible for area Christian families to choose an academically challenging program for their children which reinforces—not contradicts—the biblical values of their homes and churches.
• You are partnering with the Christian home, church, and school to evangelize and disciple the minds and hearts of the next generation.
• You are equipping children and youth with the kind of intellectual and spiritual foundation necessary for success in the 21^st Century.
• This kind of school can only exist if it receives the generous and sacrifical support of our extended school family and the local community.
• The sacrificial giving of our families and friends in the past laid the foundation for what our current students enjoy; now it is our turn.
• The graduates of this school are going to make a real impact on their world, and we can be a part of that by our giving.

Ultimately, the most compelling reason to give to GHCA is that every gift, regardless of the amount, is an investment in our future generation.

“Passive” fundraising lets you contribute to GHCA while doing your everyday shopping. These programs do not require a cash contribution. Each seemingly small contribution adds up in a big way to benefit a variety of GHCA programs.

General Mills Box Tops for Education

Cash is awarded to the school for box tops from qualifying General Mills, Betty Crocker and Pillsbury products with the "Box Tops for Education" logo. There is a prize for our top-collecting class each month. Encourage your friends, family, and church to support the Academy in this very easy way.

Ink Cartridges

Bring your empty laser and inkjet cartridges to school for participation in our redemption program.

GoodSearch.com

You can raise money for Greater Houlton Christian Academy just by searching the Internet with GoodSearch.com.

Use GoodSearch.com like any other search engine - the site is powered by Yahoo! - but each time you do, money is generated for us. 

Here's how it works:

1.  Go to http://www.goodsearch.com/

2.  Enter Greater Houlton Christian Academy into the "Who do you GoodSearch for?" box, and click the [Verify] button.

3.  Search the Internet from GoodSearch.com just like you would with any search engine.

4.  Since GoodSearch donates 50% of its advertising revenue to charities and schools, every time you search the Internet at GoodSearch, you'll be earning money for us.

You can keep track of our estimated earnings by clicking on the [Amount Raised] button.

We hope that you will use GoodSearch as your main search engine from here on out, and that you will also pass this message on to your friends and family.  The more people who use GoodSearch and designate Greater Houlton Christian Academy, the more money will go to GHCA!

Greater Houlton Christian Academy is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization and gifts to the school are tax-deductible. Here are some of the ways you can help us continue to make a solid Christian education available to the greater Houlton region:

Current Gifts
(made in the current year that the school may utilize and access immediately) include:

• Cash
• Stocks, Bonds, and Other Appreciated Securities 
• Real Estate
• Charitable Remainder Trusts
• Charitable Lead Trusts
• Tangible Personal Property

Deferred Gifts
(directly connected to your financial or estate plan to enable GHCA to meet future needs and goals) include:

• Bequests
• Charitable Gift Annuities
• Charitable Remainder Trusts
• Life Insurance
• Retirement Assets

Categories of Gifts

Unrestricted gifts: gifts without specific restrictions; use determined by the school

Restricted gifts: gifts where purpose is designated by the donor (restricted gifts are accepted based on their consistency with the school's mission, goals and priorities).

Gifts in Kind: gifts of tangible personal property that are in good condition, useful in educational programming, and/or readily salable. It is the donor's responsibility to place a value on an in-kind gift for tax purposes.

Honor/Memorial gifts: gifts in honor or in memory of an individual(s) or family. The Business Office will notify the honoree(s) and/or the family of those remembered. Efforts involving the physical placement of a plaque, tree, or other items in memorial or tribute of someone must be submitted for approval to the Finance Committee.

Naming Gifts: naming gifts should equal at least 51% of the total construction costs of a facility, and are accepted based on their consistency with the school's mission, goals and priorities. A similar formula is used for the naming of rooms or other sections of a facility.

Annual Fund Campaign:  Our Annual Fund campaign consists of fundraising events and letter appeals to our current families, alumni families, friends, businesses and churches. It raises unrestricted money to support the operating budget, which includes instructional materials, programming, equipment and technology, as well as faculty salaries, faculty development and facility maintenance. The Annual Fund is the primary means to make up the difference between what is paid in tuition and the real cost of educating each student. The Annual Fund is tax-deductible whereas tuition is not. Gifts to the Annual Fund also help fund our Tuition Assistance Program (TAP).

Major Gifts: Major gift contributions support specific projects, equipment or programs (typically capital needs that are not part of the operating budget).

Tuition Assistance Program: Our Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) makes the difference for some families being able to have their children receive a Christian education. Contributions toward this fund are greatly needed and greatly appreciated. However, contributions cannot be designated for specific students. All donations toward this program go into the general TAP fund. The donations are pooled with existing funds to allocate to students in need who have applied for aid and have met the criteria.

For any questions about giving to GHCA, please contact the Business Office at 207-532-0736.