BLOCS scholarship helped N-G grad follow her dream

Alivia Leuzzi squeezed every opportunity possible out of her experience at Saints John Neumann and Maria Goretti Catholic High School.

There was drama, there were sports, and there was the backbone of Catholic education that has driven Leuzzi’s family history for generations. There was simply no other choice.

“My mother, aunts, great aunts and both grandmothers all went to Goretti and my grandfather and both of my uncles went to Neumann,” said Leuzzi, who lives near the Stadium District in South Philly. “That’s called a legacy.”

But financially for Leuzzi, a Catholic high school education wasn’t always a given despite her ambition and her mother Tara Storace’s vow to make it happen. Storace was a single mother until Leuzzi was 11 and had managed to pay tuition at St. Monica’s Roman Catholic School. As high school neared, there were question marks. But a scholarship from Business Leadership Organized for Catholic Schools, better known as BLOCS, eased the burden when it came to dollars and cents.

“I would have done anything,” Storace said. “I would have worked two more jobs if I had to, but the scholarship helped. She just had such a great experience at Neumann-Goretti.”

Leuzzi joined the drama club and played big roles like the singing crab “Sebastian” in the Saints’ version of The Little Mermaid. She also played volleyball and flag football and was a host of a podcast at school.

On May 29, she was the keynote speaker at the BLOCS Annual Gala, which was held at the Please Touch Museum in Fairmount Park. Leuzzi reflected on how much her BLOCS scholarship helped her follow her dreams. 

“I always felt like Catholic school was the best fit for me,” Leuzzi said. “BLOCS really, really helped me because my mom was a single mom that put me through middle school at St. Monica’s. We didn’t really have the money for it. But that’s the heart and soul of Philadelphia. It’s the hard-working middle class and you experience a lot of that when you go to Catholic school. BLOCS being able to help so many students including myself is incredible. Just for someone to have that belief in me even though I had never met them, is a feeling like no other.”

For more than 40 years, BLOCS has provided tuition assistance to students at all levels. According to its website, BLOCS partners with more than 400 schools to provide over 33,000 need-based scholarships each year. Through partnership with the state DCED’s Educational Improvement and Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit Programs, BLOCS offers donors up to 90-99 percent credits on their Pennsylvania taxes when redirecting their personal or corporate tax liability as need-based scholarships through BLOCS.

More than 96 percent of every dollar donated to BLOCS is distributed directly to families through partnering schools. BLOCS raises more than $140 million annually in private and corporate donations for families in need.

“I loved every single person I met at Neumann-Goretti from the students to the staff or anyone that has come into that school,” Leuzzi said. “I was so blessed and grateful for the opportunity I had at Neumann-Goretti.”

Leuzzi will study secondary education with a concentration on history at St. Joseph’s University next year. She currently teaches CCD classes on Sundays at Stella Maris Catholic Church on 10th Street. 

“My mom is a teacher and I’ve loved school since I was a kid,” Leuzzi said. “I also had some phenomenal teachers at Neumann-Goretti that made me want to be that type of teacher for another kid.”

The BLOCS gala showcased several high-achieving Philadelphia-area high school students at its gala. Musicians, artists and the Roman Catholic Robotics team were all on hand to spotlight their talents. Others like Neumann-Goretti’s Daniel Adefolarin were on hand to greet guests and talk about their experiences in Catholic school. Adefolarin will play football at United States Military Academy West Point next year. 

“Sitting back and realizing what I have and what I can possibly be with an education from West Point really means a lot,” Adefolarin said. “It’s why I decided to commit there and choose that route.”

Adefolarin is a three-star football player who played defensive end and offensive tackle for the Saints. He’s unsure of what he will study, but he knows he will bring a great high school education with him to West Point.

“I was a student that made a name for myself at Neumann-Goretti,” Adefolarin said. “A lot of the kids there come out with scholarships and they have a really good education from Neumann-Goretti.”

They also leave with lifelong bonds made in the classroom or on the athletic fields. BLOCS CEO Rob Delany, a St. John Neumann graduate, emphasized that notion.

“When they leave our schools, they are going to be in each other’s weddings,” Delany said. “They are going to be doctors for each other’s children. And they are going to be with each other and for each other through the good and the bad throughout. That you know that you’re never completely alone is the biggest, greatest gift of this education.”

Leuzzi’s and Neumann-Goretti’s Class of 2025 have now graduated with an amazing experience. 

“It’s hard to put into words,” Storace said of her daughter. “She’s so good-hearted and such a good kid. She wears her heart on her sleeve and she loves Neumann-Goretti. I’m beyond proud of her.”