Midtown International School (MIS), a Druid Hills private school that shocked parents this spring by closing abruptly, will not declare bankruptcy after all.
Founded in 2013, MIS was a school for twice-exceptional students from kindergarten to 12th grade. With less than a week’s notice from school officials that MIS would permanently close on April 3, families were left angry, confused, and scrambling to find ways for their children to finish out the 2025-2026 school year. Some parents were out thousands of dollars in tuition, fees, and deposits.
A final report released to parents on June 25 from the MIS board of trustees has revealed little about why the school’s finances were in dire straits. The report states that MIS had no endowment, claiming the school was relying solely on its own community members to sustain itself – despite more than $1.4 million in loans and advances.
Rough Draft obtained a copy of this report from a parent.
“Unsustainable” operations
As MIS is finalizing a transaction to sell its furniture, fixtures, and equipment to another school in the Atlanta area, lenders who hold liens are expected to recover less than 10% of the total amount they are owed. Parents, who sustained the school for years, are expected to receive nothing.
The board blamed the decline of re-enrollment and demand in scholarships and financial aid for making operations “unsustainable.” As enrollment declined, MIS was bringing in less revenue than could cover its expenses. Liabilities substantially exceeded assets, the letter containing the report explained to parents.
The school’s revenues fell approximately 16% from $4.3 million to $3.6 million from 2020 to 2024, except in 2021 when revenue exceeded expenses. Despite the board reducing expenses by 37%, from $6.1 million in 2020 to $3.8 million in 2024, MIS spent $2.2 million more than it brought in during those four years.
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“Its weak financial performance left MIS exposed to unexpected negative changes in paid enrollment (by far its largest revenue source), like those it experienced during the spring 2026 enrollment period,” the letter continued.
The school made attempts in 2025 to reduce costs by shuttering the high school and putting the building at 1575 Sheridan Road up for sale. Parents discovered during an emergency virtual call days before the school closure that MIS sold the building to Midtown 1575 LLC, a company formed in Delaware by board member Brett Curry.
The report claims that an attorney determined that the sale of the building “was fair, reasonable, and in the school’s best interests.” It was the highest offer, and the only offer that allowed the MIS to remain in the building.
The board, composed of three voting members, has previously claimed that applications across the independent school sector were down 20% to 30% during the 2025-2026 school year.
During the admissions process for 2026-2027, 40% percent of families were set to pay full-tuition for the 2026-2027 school year. The report does not address why the administration continued to offer discounted tuition or scholarships.
By the numbers
With only $18,000 on hand at the time of closing and a $300,000 monthly operating budget, the board assessed its obligations to creditors.
MIS owes:
- $500,000 to pay back a Small Business Administration loan
- $900,000 to various merchants for cash advance lenders
- $4.25 million to Midtown 1575, the building owner
- $370,000 to families for deposits and tuition payments
It’s unclear whether MIS financially fulfilled contractual obligations to teachers.
MIS has entered into a consensual lease termination agreement to retain possession of the building at 1575 Sheridan Road. The report said MIS will exit the building by late June or early July. “The landlord has allowed us to retain possession without additional rent or a termination fee,” the letter stated.
“We are grateful for the opportunity to have served this community and have tried to conclude the school’s wind-down efficiently and with the greatest possible respect for our families and students, while also respecting the legal rights of the school’s other creditors,” the letter to parents concluded.
