Atlanta private school announces sudden closure, citing financial problems
Leaders of a small private school in Atlanta notified parents Monday that the school would be closing permanently — effective Friday.
The unexpected announcement came via an email Monday night. Leaders cited declining enrollment and an “unsustainable” financial situation. Midtown International School will close its doors at 4:15 p.m. Friday, nearly two months before the academic year will end.
“This decision was not made lightly,” the message read.
Andrew Hardin and his family were having dinner Monday evening when he got the shocking email from his son’s school.
He and his wife knew the school had financial issues. The private school discontinued high school operations at the end of the last school year. But this?
“This seems like an extreme and sudden reaction to whatever crisis they’re facing,” Hardin said in a telephone interview with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The school serves an estimated 100 to 150 students in kindergarten through eighth grade, parents said. It bills itself as “Atlanta’s home for globally-minded, gifted students.”
Hardin’s son, 9-year-old Charlie, is a third grader at the school. Charlie is a creative child with an imaginative mind who makes up games and wants to be a video game designer. He’s also been diagnosed with ADHD, his father said. The school has helped Charlie flourish academically, Hardin said.
“He loves it there,” Hardin said.
In the letter, the Board of Trustees said the school lost 20 students who were paying full tuition and saw a decline in applications, which “created a financial gap the school was not positioned to absorb.” An official statement to the public also stated the school was seeing a “significant increase in demand” for financial aid.
Hardin was paying $27,000 to the school for their son to attend.
Nationwide, private school closures remain rare. Roughly 50 private schools closed their doors in the 2024-2025 school year, according to data tracked by the Cato Institute’s Center for Educational Freedom. In 2025-2026, the number so far is 37.
There’s been a 5% increase in private school enrollment in the U.S. in kindergarten through 12th grades between 2011 and 2021, the most recent year the National Center for Education Statistics has data. Only Catholic schools saw a decline in enrollment during that time period, compared with schools with no religious affiliation or schools affiliated with other religions.
The rising private school enrollment — as well as a boom in homeschooling — has contributed to a decline in public school enrollment in the metro Atlanta area. School systems in Atlanta, City Schools of Decatur, DeKalb County and Fulton County have approved plans to close schools, explored or are exploring school closures. Fulton County closed two schools at the end of the last school year.
There are no laws dictating when private schools should announce a closure, a spokesperson for the Georgia Attorney General’s office said Tuesday.
Midtown International School has not yet released information about final grades, refunds, upcoming trips, student devices or graduation. Those details will be forthcoming, the Monday message stated. Parents are also worried about what’s going to happen to the teachers. The AJC requested to interview a member of the board of trustees but did not receive a response by the time of publication.
Hardin said he and some parents in his son’s class have talked to their teacher about perhaps teaching the class privately through the rest of the school year. Other parents are exploring other options for their kids.
“We’re all trying to move forward together,” he said.
Education Editor Eric Stirgus contributed to this report.
School closures in Georgia
Enrollment declines are forcing metro Atlanta school systems into hard choices.
The problem: School closures loom as metro Atlanta grapples with enrollment decline
DeKalb: Many low-income schools on DeKalb’s list of possible closures
APS: Why the Atlanta school board voted to close and repurpose some schools
City Schools of Decatur: CSD Backs off of K-2 school closure plan ... for now
Fulton County: Families say tough goodbyes to two elementary schools set to close
About the Author
Cassidy Alexander covers Georgia education issues for the AJC. She previously covered education for The Daytona Beach News-Journal, and was named Florida's Outstanding New Journalist of the Year.
