Progressive NYC Private School Fighting Foreclosure Files Bankruptcy

(Bloomberg) -- Manhattan Country School, an Upper West Side private school promoting social justice and a progressive academic curriculum that is battling possible foreclosure, has filed bankruptcy.

MCS sought court protection Friday listing assets and liabilities of between $10 million and $50 million each on its Chapter 11 petition. The school, which operates on a sliding-scale tuition model based on families’ ability to pay, has said it suffered losses during the Covid-19 pandemic from helping impacted parents by reducing prices. The maximum annual tuition is $59,000.

Parents have been worrying about MCS’ finances and future since October’s foreclosure action by Flushing Bank. Filing Chapter 11 halts that effort and other collection actions against MCS, allowing the school to continue operating normally while attempting to resolve the litigation.

MCS is the latest progressive school to run into financial struggle. The Blue School, a progressive arts school founded by founded by members of the Blue Man Group, closed in 2023 after running into debt troubles as enrollment dropped during the pandemic.

“What’s different here and sad is typically I’ve seen new schools fail,” said Emily Glickman, an educational consultant who helps families with private-school admissions and had been getting worried calls from MCS parents before Friday’s filing. “MCS is a school with a rich history here in New York City.”

A bankruptcy lawyer representing MCS didn’t immediately return a message seeking comment. The school said in its bankruptcy petition that the value of its property on 85th Street in Manhattan is $38 million.

MCS, which took out an initial $2.5 million loan in 2017, said in court filings it was holding talks with Flushing Bank when the foreclosure action was filed last October. Flushing has alleged MCS owes at least $3 million plus interest.

Founded in 1966 to reflect “the vision of the Civil Rights Movement,” MCS’ student body has “no racial majority and broad economic diversity,” according to the school’s website. The school serves kindergarten through eight graders in Manhattan and also owns a farm in Roxbury, New York, where it holds classes in cooking, farming, nature and textiles.

The case is Manhattan Country School, number 25-11009, in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York

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