See today’s New York Times story on Blessed Sacrament School in the Bronx, where Supreme Court Justice nominee Sonia Sotomayor studied from Kindergarten through 8th grade.

The Times article does a good job of showing how students are inspired by the idea that someone who sat in their classroom (maybe even shared their desk) can go on to achieve great things. But it also paints an accurate picture of the struggle and effort it takes for families to keep up with tuition payments.

A few weeks ago, we spoke with Maria M., who does clerical work through a temp agency. Her son, Demetrius, just finished first grade at Blessed Sacrament. “I didn’t feel comfortable sending him to the public schools,” she said. “I knew I couldn’t afford private school by myself so I did what I needed to do. I decided to make the sacrifice – to pay what I had to pay.”

Including Demetrius, a total of 55 of the school’s 280 students use CSF scholarships to go to Blessed Sacrament. Who can tell which of them will be the school’s next claim to fame?