Frederica Academy Apogee Scholarship Program
	The Georgia Tuition Tax Credit Scholarship program allows Georgia taxpayers to receive an income tax credit for donations to registered Student Scholarship Organizations (SSOs). Once pre-approved by the Georgia Department of Revenue, a taxpayer may make a donation to a registered SSO. When making the donation, the donor designates a participating independent school that may be eligible to receive the funds. To qualify for the scholarship funds, the independent school must enter into a partnership agreement with the SSO and submit a formal request on behalf of a student who meets the state’s and the school’s scholarship eligibility requirements. Frederica Academy has selected the Apogee Georgia School Choice Scholarship Fund to be its primary SSO partner. A donor must be a Georgia taxpayer and is limited to giving at the following levels each year: Individual Filer: $1,000 Married Couple Filing Jointly: $2,500 C-Corporation 75% of Corporation’s State Tax Liability Although participants must make a payment to the SSO within 30 days of being pre-approved by the Georgia Department of Revenue, he or she will receive a tax credit in the amount of the contribution when he or she files his or her state income tax returns. The donor may also be eligible to list the donation as a charitable contribution on his or her federal tax return. Tax credits are allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. Since only $51.5 million is allocated for the program in 2012, there is a good possibility that funding will not be available beyond summer. In 2011, funding was depleted in October. A student must be a resident of Georgia and be enrolled in a Georgia public school or be eligible to enroll in a qualified Kindergarten or Pre-Kindergarten program. At Frederica Academy, the student must also qualify for the school’s need-based financial aid program—as stipulated by our Apogee agreement. Frederica Academy has significantly increased its need-based student financial aid budget because of its partnership with the Apogee Georgia School Choice Scholarship Fund. Given the ongoing economic challenges that many families within our community are facing, these funds have been extremely useful in helping attract new deserving students to Frederica. That being said, demand for financial aid continues to exceed the amount raised through the tax credit program. Accordingly, we need your help. As a result of the growing popularity of the tax credit opportunity, we encourage early participation in the program.   Click here to see an interactive video about the Apogee Program.