Policy
Chapin School is deeply committed to making the excellence of its education available to qualified students and to ensuring that the school continues to attract a diverse student body. The school awards financial aid grants and Named Scholarhips based on demonstrated family financial need. In both cases, the amount of financial aid is contingent upon the availability of funds in the school's financial aid budget.
Chapin School is also committed to providing for the fair and equitable distribution of financial aid funds. The school seeks a partnership with families who will make a Chapin education a high priority in their budgeting of financial resources. With the assumption that the student and his/her family receive the benefits of an independent school education, Chapin School believes that the student's family, not the school, should be the primary source of financial support for the student. The student's family includes non-custodial, separated or divorced parents.
Chapin School does not discriminate on the basis of race, creed, color, ancestry, age, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, religious affiliation or in any other characteristic protected by law in the administration of financial aid.
Financial Aid Grants
Financial Aid Grants are made to families with demonstrated family financial need. Grants are made for one year to students in good academic standing, and applications for financial aid must be renewed each year. Award decisions are made by Chapin’s Financial Aid Committee, which utilizes information supplied by families to TADS, a leading provider of financial aid assessment services, as well as additional factors and special circumstances, to determine a family's ability to contribute to tuition.
Factors taken into consideration include: the number and ages of children in the family attending tuition-paying schools; additional dependents; all sources of income and expense; all assets and debts; and the extent of estimated contributions to education by parents, guardians, the aid recipient and other family members. In fairness to two-income applicant families, Chapin will add $20,000 to a non-earning spouse’s income since that parent chooses not to work for an income. Exceptions will be granted for spouses staying at home with pre-school children. Copies of the family's and student applicant's federal income tax returns and W-2 forms are required to verify reported income. See table below for details.
All families are expected to pay a portion of tuition expenses, and grants will not be awarded in excess of demonstrated family financial need. Grants do not cover expenses over and above tuition such as gym uniforms, books, lunch and Parents’ Association dues.
Named Scholarships
Chapin School is fortunate to be able to award endowed scholarships to students who contribute to the life of the school and qualify for financial aid. These Named Scholarships are as follows:
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Page & Otto Marx, Jr. Scholarship |
Peggy Coe Scholarship |
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Reinfeld-Kolodny Scholarship |
Bridget & Mark Scholarship |
|
Parents' Association Scholarship |
Boies-Johnson Scholarship |
|
Leonard Winkler Scholarship |
Senior Class Scholarship |
Student Assets
The student applicant’s assets are now expected to be liquidated for education over the remaining years in pre-college school plus an allowance for four years of college. This allocation will be added to the calculated parental contribution to determine a total contribution from parents and student. For this reason, the student applicant’s federal income tax return is now also required.
Separated or Divorced Parents
Certain difficulties may arise in judging financial aid applications filed on behalf of students with special family circumstances. Nevertheless, because financial aid is based on a family’s ability to meet the cost of education at Chapin School, it is necessary to consider the financial resources of both natural parents in cases where separation or divorce has taken place. Although the custodial parent (the parent with whom the applicant resides) and spouse are considered to be the student’s primary family, the non-custodial parent and spouse must also complete the financial aid application and supply a copy of their family’s current federal income tax return. The school will not be bound by the assertion of one parent that he/she is not responsible for educational expenses. If this information is not available at the time the application is evaluated, it may cause an arbitrary assessment of financial need to be made by the school. This may result in a lesser award, or no award at all.
It is the responsibility of the custodial parent to see that the non-custodial parent receives, completes and returns the application. Failure to do so could limit the amount of aid granted because the Financial Aid Committee would be required to make its decision with incomplete data.
Parents are assured that all information submitted will be kept in strictest confidence and that this information will not be shared with either family.