Leave a Legacy

Leave a legacy that transforms lives and changes the world.

Franciscan Heritage Fund

Helps FST keep the Franciscan spirit alive by continuing to recruit world-renowned Franciscan Scholars.

FST Faculty Development Fund

Support faculty innovation in teaching, research, and publications which will reach worldwide audiences.

Student Community Building

Support student activities such as retreats, social gatherings, and prayer services for students.

Lay and Religious Scholarships

Assist lay students pursuing professions in parish administration, chaplaincy, education, healthcare, nonprofit leadership, and more.

Annual Fund

Entrust the Franciscan School of Theology to apply your support wherever it’s needed most.

The Franciscan School of Theology

As the only Franciscan Catholic graduate-level theological school and seminary in the English-speaking world, the Franciscan School of Theology (FST) is an international center for the promotion of the Franciscan Intellectual Tradition. FST embodies this vibrant tradition through a curriculum rooted in Franciscan Theology, applying centuries of lived wisdom to the needs of today. 

Our mission is to prepare women and men for professional ministry in the Roman Catholic Church and for careers in theological education. We also strive to guide them in living a life dedicated to solidarity with those on the margins of society and the Church, grounded in the knowledge of our Catholic faith.  

FST graduates become passionate leaders in parishes, schools, counseling centers, nonprofit organizations, healthcare settings, community ministry programs, and more. Through their vocations, service, and faith, our graduates spread the Franciscan tradition and its message of peace and joy far beyond the classroom.  

Ways You Can Create a Shared Legacy at FST

There are several ways that you can support the future of the Franciscan School of Theology, either through a revocable or irrevocable deferred gift. Your attorney or tax adviser can provide guidance on the best planned giving options for you.

Charitable Requests

A gift made in your will or revocable living trust is easy to arrange, costs nothing now, and won’t reduce your assets or cashflow during life.

Life Insurance

You can name FST as the owner and beneficiary of an existing policy you no longer need and receive a tax deduction.

Retirement Plan Assets

Simply name FST as a full or partial beneficiary of your IRA or qualified pension plan and reduce taxes for your beneficiaries.

Publicly Traded Securities

Gifts of publicly traded securities, whether outright or deferred, can provide you with significant tax benefits while supporting FST’s future.

Donor-Advised Fund

You can make a legacy gift by naming FST as a beneficiary of your account.

Real Estate

Gifts of real estate, whether outright or deferred, can provide you with significant tax benefits and sustain FST’s mission.

Gifts That Pay You

A Charitable Gift Annuity or Charitable Remainder Trust can provide you with lifetime income, savings on capital gains, and a tax deduction while supporting our academic programs, faculty, and students.

Make-a-Will

Consider adding language like this to your will or revocable living trust:

I give { _ percent of my estate, or description of asset, or __ dollars } to the Franciscan School of Theology, a 501(c)(3) Nonprofit Organization, located in San Diego, CA, with mailing address of 5998 Alcala Park, San Diego, CA 92110 (Tax ID: 94-1745605), for its general purposes.

When I began my studies at the Franciscan School of Theology, a former graduate told me “It will change your life.” And it did. It changed how I see the world; how I relate to others; how I approach God. How can I not want that same experience to be available to others for years to come?

I am proud to share, I have included FST in my estate plans. It is a privilege for me to know that it will benefit the place that I will always think of as my intellectual guide and my spiritual home.

Sam Nasada, OFM

It was eye-opening to be surrounded by all the diversity (at FST). Between the faculty, staff, and students, there was this fraternity, and there was a community. And where else can you experience a community-like feeling in a world that is so polarized?

Contact Us

The Franciscan School of Theology Legacy Society recognizes donors who name FST as a beneficiary of their will, trust, IRA, or estate planning.

To learn more about the Franciscan School of Theology Legacy Society, and the difference your legacy gift can make for FST today and tomorrow, please fill out the form.