Cumberland Academy of Georgia recently completed renovations, adding a music therapy room, a film room and various electronic equipment. The plan was to better serve its special needs students.
Instead, the Sandy Springs school was burglarized.
“I just can’t imagine who would want to do something like this to a school, especially for these special needs kids,” founder Debbi Scarborough told Channel 2 Action News.
Sometime Monday morning, thieves entered Cumberland Academy through a broken window and stole thousands of dollars worth of equipment. An incident report from Sandy Springs police estimated the value of the stolen items — four AV projectors, a flat-screen TV, a camcorder and various audio equipment — at more than $6,000.
Officials said gaming systems were also stolen.
"The saddest part is much of the equipment taken can only be used for education purposes, so once thieves realize what they have taken, they will probably trash it," the school posted on Facebook.
Scarborough and her husband founded Cumberland Academy in 2007 after deciding that their son Steven, who has Asperger’s syndrome, needed more than public schools were offering. Since then, the Mt. Vernon Highway facility has served hundreds of students with high-functioning autism, Asperger’s, attention deficit disorder (ADD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and “other learning differences.”
As of Wednesday afternoon, no arrests had been made in the burglary. The school said it has a surveillance system, and videos were being reviewed by Sandy Springs police.
Despite the thefts, Cumberland will soldier on.
“…We fully intend to begin the school year as scheduled,” the school wrote on Facebook, “and fully intend to continue our education programs with gusto.”
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