A private K-12 school in Tucson, Ariz., is closing after 86 years because of financial difficulties.
The Arizona Daily Star reports that Green Fields School, a college preparatory school that opened in 1933, is closing immediately,
The school hasn't been able to secure funding for the entire 2019-20 school year, Board of Trustees President Anthony Marshall said on the school's website. Students who were planning to attend Green Fields in August will now have to find new schools.
The board has voted to begin bankruptcy proceedings and put the school property up for sale, Marshall says. Any money that comes from the sale will go to repay the school’s lenders and vendors and to reimburse families who have already paid tuition.
Marhsall says repayment could take a number of months and is dependent on the final sale price of the property.
The Pima County Assessor’s Office lists the school’s property with a total full cash value of $4.56 million.
The school’s last available tax filing listed its total assets at $4.9 million, primarily the campus and buildings, and its total liabilities at $2 million.
Tax filings show the school, a nonprofit, had a revenue of nearly $2.2 million in 2015.
In 2016, its revenue was down to under $1.6 million, with a net income that was about $549,000 in the red.
In 2017, the last tax filing available, the revenue was up slightly to under $1.8 million with a loss of about $676,000.
The school saw financial losses every year since at least 2011 except for 2015, according to publicly available tax documents.
Tax documents say the school provides education to about 150 students.
According to a 2016 application to the school, tuition ranged from $8,750 to $14,600, depending on a student’s grade.
A tax filing in 2000 said the school had nearly 250 students.
The Green Fields board was still working to secure funding for the coming school year until this week. Officials also are trying to find other employment for the school’s teachers and will help students transferring to other schools
“I realize that this news is both surprising and painful,” Marshall wrote. “Please remember that a Green Fields support system is still intact. We remain the Green Fields Community, and as such, I know we will offer each other support through this very hard time.”
