50-yr-old Harlem School of the Arts closing ($$ woes/someone wants to buy the real estate...hmmm)

Rally Planned To Save Harlem School Of The Arts
Parents vote no confidence in school's board of directors

Parents were blindsided by the school's closure. "We thought it was an April Fool's joke," said Bobbi Booth, a 13-year-old who takes dance classes at Harlem School of the Arts. Her grandmother and other parents say school leaders gave them no indication the 45-year-old institution was on the precipice of financial ruin.

"They hired an interim CEO. We had a meeting with the interim CEO. This was 3 weeks ago. They told us that there was no intention of closing the school," Emmanuel says. "We've since learned that someone has made an offer to purchase the building. We were even told someone was looking at the school yesterday!"

Even school administrators admit HSA has a history of financial mismanagement. Tax records show the school was bleeding money as early as 2006. By 2007 school managers had turned an $680,000 surplus fund balance into a $1.1 million deficit. Emmanuel says it was clear to parents no one was watching the purse strings.

"If you would have walked in, it was heavily overstaffed. We've had no access to the financial accounting of the school. It's a not-for-profit and they're supposed to publish their financial statements every year. As far as I know they have not done so for the last 3 years."

http://www.wpix.com/news/local/web-art-school-parents-protest,0,4707579.story

Wow. :( I have no words.

as well as definitive proof that education "reform" is about $$$$, not education.

It's a hunch. I don't know if there was good money paid to stuff corrupt people into high places there in order to force the sale of the property, but I do know there are some greedy bastards out there running empires.

Arts education is SO important to children. Not everyone can be an athlete or academic star, but EVERYONE can get some joy and self-knowledge out of music, dance, painting, theater, etcetera.