FORT PIERCE, Fla. — Parents and teachers at a private school in Fort Pierce say they were “blindsided” after learning the school had abruptly closed its doors over the weekend, with some claiming they never received a notification.
Creative Learning Lab Academy shut down its Fort Pierce campus amid growing financial troubles.
WATCH BELOW: WPTV's Ange Toussaint speaks with parents impacted by the school's closure
WPTV first reported on the school’s financial issues after a teacher said they had not been paid in weeks.
Parents who showed up on Monday said they were told the school closed because of mounting financial problems.
In a letter sent to families over the weekend, the school’s owners wrote that they had “exhausted all financial resources” and could not continue to go deeper into debt.
“We have given it our best effort and fought hard to remain open for you, but at this time we do not see how we can keep our doors open,” the statement read.
But just hours after the closure was announced, owner Christopher Madison told WPTV’s Joel Lopez that the school planned to reopen on Tuesday, adding to the confusion among parents.
Samantha Dawson, whose daughter is enrolled in Pre-K at the school, said she never received notice of the closure or of plans to reopen.
“I got nothing. We didn’t get a letter, they didn’t have a sign on the door, these people just closed overnight, to be honest, I can’t believe. I’m floored,” Dawson said.
Dawson said her daughter’s tuition is covered by the Step Up for Students program, and that the school already collected more than $2,000 in tuition. She also said she is out of money spent on uniforms and school supplies.
“To be abruptly closing like this, as a single mom, I work two jobs just to provide for my daughter. Now she has to go through this process all over again,” Dawson said.
Another parent, who did not want to be identified, said she spent hundreds of dollars on uniforms and school supplies for her three children to attend the school. She withdrew them two weeks ago over curriculum concerns, but said she is still worried about getting a refund.
“I work hard to get money to purchase her school clothes. I had to work double shifts, and now I just have to figure out how to get new school clothes and pay the bills as well,” she said.
A previous WPTV investigation uncovered that the school was struggling financially due to funding delays from the Step Up for Students. However, the organization said it was not aware of those delays.
Calls to Step Up for Students were not immediately returned as of this story.
