The board of directors for an embattled Edgewater charter school has voted unanimously to close it, ending three weeks of uncertainty over the school's survival.
The board of KIPP Harbor Academy voted 6-0 late Thursday night to close the school. The vote came after the school's principal, Jallon Brown, resigned, saying she could not find enough teachers to staff the school.
Since the school opened in August 2005, Harbor Academy has struggled to find more space for a growing enrollment. But a two-year investigation of 25 locations ultimately proved fruitless by mid-June, when the school abruptly notified parents it would close.
The ensuing outcry prompted the board to vote to keep it open. By that time, 10 of the school's 12 teachers had already found new jobs elsewhere, and Brown said she could not find enough qualified replacements by the scheduled start of classes next month.
In Brown's resignation letter, mailed to parents last week, she wrote: "This has been a difficult process for everyone involved, and we have done everything possible to keep our school open. ... While I wish the situation was different, we are unable to provide this high quality option to you or your children at this time."