The Marin School, a private high school in San Rafael, is set to close at the end of the school year, officials said.
The news, which surprised parents and staff, came last week after what was described by school leaders as a “hail Mary pass” to a major donor that failed to rescue the college prep school out of an unanticipated financial pit.
The crisis started in early April, at the end of the enrollment period for 2023-24, when, despite a healthy number of applicants, the number of students who enrolled dipped to 63. That was down from 85 students in 2021-22 and 77 this school year.
“We have had a really precipitous drop in enrollment over the last two years,” Amy Jonak, chair of the school’s board of trustees, said Monday. “It dropped 25% over the last two years.”
Jonak said the school had expected to have adequate enrollment for next year based on the “really robust group of applicants” earlier in the year.
“But you don’t know what you’re going to get until you get it,” she said.
Parents are trying to raise several hundred thousand dollars by Friday to keep the school going for another year, said Kate Rabbe of Greenbrae.
“It was sad news when we heard it,” said Rabbe, whose son Charlie is a freshman at the school on North San Pedro Road. “We were blindsided.”
“The school is incredible at helping kids learn from right where they are at,” Rabbe said. “The teachers are tremendous.”
Jonak said the board of trustees wants to avoid a scenario in which the school would open for 2023-24 and then have to close in the middle of the year.
“We can’t guarantee that we can pay salaries through the end of this coming year,” Jonak said.
The other option was to go another year and start raising money, she said.
“The board was not comfortable with that,” she said. “So the board had to make a call: Tell them now, so they can make new placements and arrangements.”
A letter went out to parents and staff on Wednesday.
The school, which has an annual tuition of about $53,000, has operated for 42 years in several Marin locations. It is known for offering small class sizes, a strong arts program, high academic success and individual attention.
“Over its history, the school has provided fertile ground for student success and growth,” said Ben Griggs, head of school. “Not just academically, but also socially and emotionally.”
Griggs said he is “so proud of what our current faculty and staff have accomplished.”
“Also, I’m proud of what the teachers and administrators from the past have built during the long history of the school,” he said.
Jonak said she believes that the enrollment decline was more due to external factors such as the economy and “the long tail of COVID” than to any dissatisfaction with the school.
“We have stuck to our mission,” Jonak said.
Griggs said the passion and support by parents is gratifying.
“This school has meant so much to so many students and families over 42 years,” he said. “Especially in recent days, we have felt an outpouring of support and gratitude for the Marin School and its mission and its excellent educators.”
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