Jesuit High School Sacramento announces a transformational $1 million gift from Billy ’98 and Jessaca Downing to support the school’s historic transition to a Co-Divisional model. The Downings’ unrestricted and unconditional gift will help modernize key facilities and learning spaces, ensuring all students have equitable access to the resources they need to thrive throughout their academic journey.

The alumnus from the class of 1998 is a member of Jesuit Sacramento’s Board of Trustees and on the Advisory Board of Santa Clara University’s Leavey School of Business. Downing feels Jesuit Sacramento helped shape his life and values. He and his family show their support and commitment to the school through participation, passion, and engagement. 

“As Jesuit evolves to welcome both young men and women, Jessaca and I want to help ensure that the school continues to lead with excellence—rooted in faith, guided by discernment, and bold in innovation,” shared Downing. “This gift reflects our deep belief in Jesuit’s mission to form compassionate, capable leaders for a changing world. We are profoundly grateful for all Jesuit has given our family and for what it continues to offer to the greater Sacramento community.”

Launching in Fall 2027, Jesuit’s Co-Divisional model will establish distinct boys’ and girls’ divisions on one shared campus—preserving Jesuit’s strong traditions of brotherhood while introducing a parallel sisterhood grounded in the Ignatian ideals of inclusion, respect, and collaboration. 

The Downings’ leadership gift, among the largest in Jesuit’s history, will provide essential funding for campus infrastructure improvements, expanded athletic and extracurricular programs for female students, and the creation of enrichment opportunities that will help all students lead with wisdom, empathy, and purpose in a rapidly changing world. Their interests also include helping to build a cutting-edge campus for the future by training and implementing AI-supported teaching tools that enhance—not replace—human connection, embodying the Ignatian call to use innovation in service of the greater good.

“We hope our gift inspires other alumni, parents, and friends of Jesuit to step forward in this pivotal moment,” said Billy Downing. “Now is the time to invest in Jesuit’s mission and its future. A Jesuit education has never been more vital—for our community, for our young people, and for the world they will shape.”

The Downings’ philanthropic investment underscores their enduring dedication to education and their belief that Jesuit Sacramento must remain a model of academic, spiritual, and technological excellence for generations to come.

“Billy and Jessaca’s generosity is a powerful expression of faith in Jesuit’s future,” said President of Jesuit High School Sacramento Chris Alling. “Their commitment to both tradition and transformation emboldens our mission—to form men and women for others who think critically, act compassionately, and lead with integrity in every sphere of life.”

“Now is the time to invest in Jesuit’s mission and its future. A Jesuit education has never been more vital—for our community, for our young people, and for the world they will shape.”

-Billy ‘98 and Jessaca Downing