Brother Rice High School Expands Financial Support for First Responders

In mid-2020, in response to Covid-19, Brother Rice High School chose to freeze its tuition for the 2020-21 school year, the only private high school on the Southside of Chicago to do so. 

Now, Brother Rice seeks to ease the financial burden even more for those on the front lines: Responder Relief –  a $1000 tuition discount for all incoming freshmen sons of First Responders–Police, Fire, Paramedics, and Nurses–when they enroll at Brother Rice for the 2021-22 school year.  

This discount supplements the established scholarships that Brother Rice High School already offers to sons of First Responders, including the Jacob Manning Schmitz Memorial Scholarship and the Thomas Wortham Memorial Scholarship, both of which are awarded to sons of police officers, as well as the Dan Carbol Scholarship, offered to sons of Chicago Fire Department members.

  • The Jacob Manning Schmitz Memorial Scholarship – Jacob “Jake” Schmitz was a high achiever. He graduated as valedictorian of his grammar school class at St. Christina and excelled at Brother Rice High School, scoring a 32 on his ACT and earning a 4.7 GPA. On June 13, 2016, at the end of his junior year at Brother Rice, Jacob lost his courageous six-month battle with a rare and aggressive form of leukemia.  The only son of retired CPD Deputy Chief and current Director of Public Safety for the Cook County Sheriff Leo Schmitz and retired CPD Lt. Ellyn Weiss Schmitz, Jacob epitomized the “Be Exceptional” motto.  This memorial scholarship is awarded to seniors at Brother Rice who are the sons of police officers, as selected by the scholarship committee.
  • The Thomas Wortham Memorial Scholarship – A proud 1998 graduate of Brother Rice, Thomas E. Wortham IV had served with the Chicago Police Department for nearly three years and had been assigned to the Englewood District.  Off duty but identifying himself as a police officer, Officer Wortham was shot and killed by four subjects attempting to rob him of his motorcycle.  He had previously served with the Evergreen Park Police Department and served two tours of duty in Iraq while serving with the Wisconsin Army National Guard.  Brother Rice students who are sons of police officers are eligible to apply for the Thomas Wortham Memorial Scholarship, and winners are selected by the scholarship committee.
  • The Dan Carbol Scholarship – A wonderful friend to Brother Rice–and husband of Brother Rice High School Spanish teacher Mrs. Marta Carbol–Chicago Fire Department lieutenant Danny Carbol hailed from the Mount Greenwood neighborhood.  On an autumn morning in 2016, Lt. Carbol bicycled home after his shift at Engine 15 in Ashburn when he was the victim of a tragic accident.  The scholarship in Lt. Carbol’s name helps eligible Brother Rice students who are sons of Chicago Fire Department members, who involve themselves in extracurricular activities, and who demonstrate financial need.  

Brother Rice is proud to memorialize these men who were taken from us far too soon; their legacies live on through these important financial awards.  More information about these and other scholarship opportunities can be found at https://www.brotherrice.org/scholarship-descriptions/ or by contacting Greg Nye via email at gnye@brrice.org