A family wishing to enroll a child in our facility is requested to file an application and come to a preliminary interview. The appointment is made for both parents and a representative of the school’s Management Board. In fact, in view of the assumptions of the educational model discussed above, it is more appropriate to say that not only the child, but the entire family joins the project.

„We like the fact that the school emphasizes the leading role of the family as the natural environment for the development and upbringing of children. We have five kids and we greatly appreciate the school’s support through lectures, workshops, and availability of spiritual formation,” say Magdalena and Dominik Solski, parents of two sons and three daughters. “We learn something new about ourselves as a family and about our children almost every day.”

If both parties believe they can cooperate within the framework provided by the project, another meeting is appointed with the Financial Director. That interview is devoted to discussing the family’s financial commitment to support the school’s development. The exact amount of that commitment is arranged on an individual basis, depending, among other things, on the possibilities of each family. Most STERNIK families are on an average income. There are also some families of limited means, and a small percentage of those who are well-off. Each of them makes a great, and sometimes a very great effort to join the project. In result of individual arrangements, each family makes a decision concerning their financial contribution. Some make a one-time payment, others make it in installments.  Some manage to find a sponsor, others decide it is better to take out a loan, still others know that while they do not have enough money at the moment, the situation will change in a few months’ time. There are many possibilities, and all of them advocate a personalized model of financial contribution to the project. So far, this has been the most effective way of putting into practice the principle of preventing the material situation from becoming the most important (or, still worse, the sole) criterion for enrollment in the project.

Each family makes a great, and sometimes a very great effort to join the project.
In result of individual arrangements, each family makes a decision on their financial contribution.

 Sources of Financing

Where can we raise the money necessary to start and continue the project? This was the question facing the group of founding parents at the beginning of STERNIK’s existence. They were looking for people willing to support the initiative with a donation, or a loan. Families joining the project often contributed their savings in order to help launch the schools.    

„I must say I discover daily how generous people can be,” says Marcin Wyszomierski. “I didn’t realize that it was by concrete people that concrete money was contributed in order for the project to see the light of day. Today I think our human eyes rarely perceive what is in other people’s hearts. We are more likely to notice an expensive car driving up the school drive than to guess that its affluent owner has provided support for many families, paid for the windows for example, or the fencing around the kindergarten, or provided money for the purchase of the hall housing new classes.”

This is not enough to finance the project, however. In order to create an infrastructure satisfying the requirements of the model of education adopted by STERNIK, more investment of about PLN 100m is still ahead. The money needed to purchase land and build new facilities is only available from a loan. For the bank, the basis for making a loan is the borrower’s equity. That is why, apart from the Association, a company has been incorporated, named Rodzice dla Szkoły (Parents for School, hereinafter RdS), for the purpose of raising funds – the most important argument in talks with a lender.  So far, RdS has raised a capital of PLN 6.5m.

In order to create an infrastructure satisfying the requirements of the model of education adopted by STERNIK, major investments are necessary. The money needed to purchase land and build new facilities is only available from a loan.