Educational Improvement Tax Credit Program

Pennsylvania’s Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) program helps to keep Sewickley Academy affordable for highly qualified students in need of financial assistance. While 100% of EITC donations directly benefit those families, EITC donors receive up to a 90% credit on their gift against their Pennsylvania State Taxes. (See the example graphic below.)
 

How the EITC Program Works

For Businesses

By making a contribution to our scholarship fund, businesses in return will receive a dollar-for-dollar state tax credit, which can be used to offset their state taxes. This is a great way for businesses to give back to the community while also benefiting from a significant tax break.
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For Individuals

As an individual, you can get involved by using a Special Purpose Entity (SPE), a new approach to EITC funding, if you have a minimum PA tax liability of $2,000 (about $65,000 in household income). Unlike the traditional EITC process, there are no rigid deadlines, and joining requires just a simple one-page application. 
 
By donating through the Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) program at Sewickley Academy, you are not only helping our students access life-changing educational opportunities and become the next generation of leaders, but you’re also helping your tax dollars go further—turning a state tax liability into a direct investment in a student’s future. 

List of 4 items.

  • How can I determine the size of my gift?

    Consult your tax advisor to determine your estimated PA tax liability (PA-40, line 12 of your most recent return). Minimum gift: $3,500. Tax credits cannot be carried over to another tax year.

  • Who is the Central PA Scholarship Fund (CPSF)?

    Our partners in EITC fundraising, CPSF, process gifts for hundreds of schools across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (63 in Allegheny County), totaling millions of dollars of support.

  • When should I apply?

    Joinders are approved on a first-come/first-served basis. The sooner you apply, the better chances you have of securing tax credits.

  • Do I have to reapply?

    CPSF offers donors from the previous year the opportunity to renew their gifts first before assigning available credits to new donors. Returning donors can also request additional credits before they are offered to new donors.
EITC IMPACT:
  • Students Aided
    • 375 Since 2001 program inception.
    • 320 Over just the last five years!
    • 78 During 2024-2025.
  • Tuition Assistance Raised:
    • $9.3 M Since 2001 program inception.
    • $6.4 M Over just the last five years!
    • $1.4 M During 2024-2025.
WHO BENEFITS:
  • PA KIDS from families with household incomes below $112,348 (+$19,775 for each dependent).
  • ACADEMY DONORS who, after receiving up to a 90% PA tax credit on their gifts ($8,379,000), made a $9,310,000 impact for a net cost of $931,000!
  • SEWICKLEY ACADEMY affordability for deserving families!
RESOURCES:
TYPICAL CPSF TIMELINE
  1. Determine your estimated PA tax liability with your tax advisor (PA-40, line 12). *Credits cannot be carried over.
  2. First-come/first-served: complete the CPSF one-page, non-binding tax credit reservation form and upload using the secure link.
  3. CPSF requests your donation (on a normal PA budget cycle, as early as September for the fall or January for the spring).
  4. CPSF sends 100% of your donation to the Academy, and it is immediately applied to the needs of a qualified family.
  5. [TAX TIME] You receive a K1 tax form from CPSF to file with your taxes for a 90% PA tax credit on your gift from the previous calendar year. (Example: A gift made in the fall of 2025 can be claimed when you file in the spring of 2026.)
 

Sewickley Academy

315 Academy Avenue, Sewickley, PA 15143