The Harlem School of the Arts, which closed earlier this month because of a $500,000 deficit, will reopen thanks to $1 million in donations. Mayor Bloomberg announced that he would reopen the school this Saturday. “Arts are an important part of every good education, and so it’s critical that we did everything we could to keep this organization’s doors open,” he said at a press conference yesterday.
The school, whose financials showed a lack of recent audits and over $400,000 owed in back taxes, had previously said it would need an "angel" to stay open, but actually they just needed some big-shot musicians. The Herb Alpert Foundation contributed $500,000, and Mary J. Blige has committed to holding a fundraiser to keep funds coming. The city also helped replace five of the board members, the announcement of which was met with cheers from parents, who had been worried they would never see their tuition again.
New board member Ephraim Emmanuel vowed the school would not fall into financial disarray again, saying, "now we know we have to be forever vigilant." The school first opened in 1964 and since then has been a pillar for the community, teaching art, dance, music and theater to over 3,000 students a year. Bloomberg said the city can't let problems with the economy shutter institutions like this. "It’s vital that through strong public-private partnerships we support the programs that make a huge difference in the lives of New Yorkers. And the Harlem School of the Arts is certainly one of those institutions.”
