How local donations fuel a multimillion-dollar Christian nonprofit that's quickly spreading in Texas

A new state law has led one religious nonprofit to start chapters for students of dozens of Texas school districts. LifeWise Academy offers weekly Bible classes to public school students under SB 1049, which requires that schools allow the programs as long as they are held off campus, are privately funded and parents give permission.

LifeWise has experienced explosive growth over the last several years. In 2018, it received about $600,000 in contributions and grants; that figure reached nearly $35 million last year.

Launching a LifeWise program

Families that want to start a LifeWise chapter must collect 50 signatures and form a launch team with members of at least three churches, to prove there is interest. Then, they must hire a program director, pay a $1,500 startup fee, and pay for a corporate trainer to come from Hilliard, Ohio, where LifeWise is based.

"Corporate makes it easy because it's the same almost anywhere you go. You're going to have to work with a church or plan a building," said Diana Balmer, who runs the LifeWise chapter in Cleburne which launched earlier this year. "They want community involvement."

The corporate office provides a beginner kit with curriculum and a starter set of Bibles printed with the LifeWise logo. Extra copies cost $14.99.

Each program pays LifeWise $20 per student per year, along with a 4% processing fee on donations collected each month. Employees and volunteers must wear LifeWise clothing, which they can purchase on the corporate website. T-shirts range from $5 to $23, but other apparel items are on sale for as much as $250.

Communities bear the costs

While LifeWise offers matching grants to new programs, it also expects each chapter to get enough donations to cover its budget. That includes insurance and other ongoing costs, as well as supplies, activities and student shirts, which are all available for purchase from LifeWise. In Cleburne, that means bringing in about $3,000 a month.

In Texarkana, the chapter serving Red Lick ISD students needs about $6,000 every month to keep things running. Director Katie Beckham said in an interview with the I-Team that churches in the area are "the backbone" of the program.

"They want to see it thrive, they want to see this program grow," she said. Her chapter recently held a fundraiser that brought in about $17,000 to help buy two new buses.

LifeWise encourages programs to give presentations to local churches to ask for larger giving amounts, while also soliciting community members for monthly sponsorships of $30 per student.

Critics of LifeWise say its business model puts too much of the burden on local communities. Zachary Parrish, a co-founder of the Secular Education Association, formerly known as Parents Against LifeWise, said communities do not have a full picture of what they are getting into when they start a chapter.

"I never want to disparage the people who support this or are working for it, because I truly believe most of them think they're doing the right thing," he said in an interview with CBS News Texas. "But I don't think they really know how it operates and where the money is going."

Parrish said while the chapters are responsible for fundraising all of their operating costs, the national organization makes money through required fees and support services. "These local programs have to purchase pretty much everything from this corporate entity," he said. "So all of that money is really getting funneled back up to the top."

LifeWise sent the I-Team the following statement:

On average, a LifeWise program operates within the cost range of $200-$400 per student per year, depending on local decisions regarding paid staff, facility and transportation, which varies from location to location. LifeWise Academy equips local programs with the curriculum, training, technology, legal compliance resources, and operational support needed to safely and effectively operate released-time religious instruction programs. Like many national nonprofit organizations with local affiliates, certain materials and services are provided through the national organization to ensure consistency, quality, child safety, and compliance with applicable laws.