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While a Gregory student, Ivan Escobosa '13 (left) got to go on a school trip to France, a trip that he still calls "the best two weeks of my life"; After graduating from the University of Arizona Eller College of Management with honors in two majors, Ivan is now a financial advisor with Edward Jones; In his free time, Ivan volunteers as assistant coach for The Gregory School soccer team.

Why take the tax credit? One student's story

 “I think a lot about where I would have been if I hadn’t come to Gregory,” Ivan Escobosa ‘13 said. “No one at my first high school was pushing me to work hard. People there bragged about who could skip more classes. I knew I wasn’t in an environment that was making me a better person.”

Ivan’s walk home from the bus stop each day brought him past The Gregory School (then St. Gregory), and one day he stopped in and asked for an application. “I took it home, filled it out the best I could, then biked over and dropped it off.” Ivan took time outside of class to learn algebra so that he could take the entrance test, and he was admitted.

He quickly realized that, with his parents’ divorce and his father living in Mexico, tuition was more than his family could afford. “I was really upset that I was going to have to go back to my old school afterall,” he said. That’s when he learned that his Gregory School education was in reach because of contributors to the Arizona State Tax Credit Program. 

“Suddenly, I looked forward to being at school every day,” he said. “My mood was better. I was happier and I was motivated. I wanted to do well and compete with my peers, who also wanted to do well.” He joined a variety of clubs, played several sports, and learned French, his third language. “Then someone said to me, ‘So, Ivan, where are you going to college?’ No one had ever asked me this before. No one in my family had gone. I had spent zero minutes ever thinking about it. And I learned I needed good grades for college, so I worked even harder.” His hard work paid off. 

After graduating from St. Gregory, Ivan received a full scholarship to the University of Arizona, where he double majored with honors in finance and entrepreneurship at the Eller College of Management. He now works as a financial advisor with Edward Jones. “I have my name on my door,” he said. “But Eller didn’t change me as much as Gregory. At Eller, I was already motivated. At St. Gregory, I came in as a completely different person. I wouldn’t be where I am if I had not gone to Gregory.”

When he’s not working, Ivan continues to be active at The Gregory School, volunteering as assistant coach for the Upper School soccer team, serving as an alumni representative for his graduating class, and participating in every pick-up soccer game on campus that he can. He is still close with many of his Gregory peers. “The big difference about this school is that people care,” he said.

How does the tax credit work and how do I participate?

The Arizona State Tax Credit is not a donation. When you take the credit, you direct funds you have already paid, or are obligated to pay, in state taxes to help provide need-based scholarships for Gregory School students. Directing your state tax liability to The Gregory School costs you nothing.

Everyone’s taxes are different, but if you work in Arizona, you probably have an Arizona tax liability. This means that you paid state taxes, even if you do not “owe” money. If you have an Arizona tax liability, you can take the credit.

Taking the credit will reduce your Arizona state tax liability by that amount, not to exceed either the maximum amount allowed or your total tax liability, whichever is less. The credit will either reduce the amount you would expect to owe the state or increase your refund.

Maximum contributions for the 2021 tax year for single filers is $1,219 and married filing jointly is $2,435. The deadline for the 2021 tax year is April 15, 2022.