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Tax Credit Scholarships

Tax Credit Scholarships

In August 2017, Illinois passed a comprehensive education funding bill. The law includes a provision for tax credit scholarships, which provide strong incentives for contributors to support non-public school scholarships for low-income students in Illinois. Students who qualify for the opportunity, may receive scholarships to attend a non-public school of their choice, such as IFS.

This legislation represents a major step forward that will help create more equity in school funding throughout Illinois, and for the first time provide real school choice for students and their families.

To learn more about contributing to a Scholarship Granting Organization and taking advantage of a 75% tax credit, click here.

To learn more about how to apply for the Scholarship and eligibility, click here.

What are tax credit scholarships?
Tax credit scholarships provide an Illinois state income tax credit (not just a deduction, like with other charitable contributions) to individuals and corporations that contribute money to a non-profit Scholarship Granting Organization (SGO). That SGO then awards scholarships to eligible students from low-income families.

What is a Scholarship Granting Organization?
A Scholarship Granting Organization (SGO) is an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that is responsible for the following, among other things:
• Receiving donations from individuals and corporations;
• Receiving and processing scholarship applications from students/families; and
• Distributing scholarships to eligible students/families in accordance with the law.

SGOs must determine whether students meet the income eligibility requirements to receive a scholarship and must distribute scholarships to eligible students on a first-come, first-serve basis. SGOs must honor restrictions placed on donations from individuals, if any.

There will likely be several SGOs in Illinois. Islamic Foundation School has chosen Empower Illinois as its preferred SGO. Empower Illinois is a trusted partner with experienced employees who have managed a similar scholarship processes. School families are free to apply for scholarships through multiple SGOs. The application process with Empower Illinois will be completed online at www.empowerillinois.org.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

If you have questions about this tax credit scholarship, please contact Islamic Foundation School Committee Member, Siraj Haque: shaque@ifsvp.org.