UPDATE: Plans to launch La Reina Academy fall through
UPDATE: Organizers of the proposed La Reina Academy told supporters Saturday morning the effort to launch the new school had failed.
"It's with a very heavy heart that we have to announce that La Reina Academy will not be able to proceed," their email read.
Missed enrollment targets left an insurmountable budget deficit, they said.
Organizers had chased numerous funding possibilities and filled two grades while getting close elsewhere. But they also noted potential students need to make decisions for the upcoming school year.
"We've left no stone unturned because we so wanted the La Reina story to continue," they wrote.
The message closed hoping each "La Reina girl" would flourish going forward: "We will be rooting for her now and always."
Original story:
Plans to replace the shuttering La Reina High School and Middle School in Thousand Oaks with a new all-girls Catholic school in Moorpark are in crunch time.
Organizers said they have until 9 a.m. on Friday to raise $1.5 million to keep the project alive.
Leaders of the planned La Reina Academy sent an email to supporters late Wednesday evening asking for pledges. The donations, the email said, could give the school extra time to enroll students and launch the new campus in the fall.
No updates on the fund drive's status had been shared publicly as of 5 p.m. on Friday.
The group had initially set a deadline at the end of Wednesday to meet enrollment targets, according to an earlier email blast. As of that email, sent late Tuesday evening, academy leaders said they needed 33 more students to make the project a financially viable reality.
On Thursday, organizers said that the school has enrolled about 75 students, less than its predecessor’s 268. The academy opened up enrollment in mid-April and has been actively recruiting students since.
"We don't want the La Reina story to end. Let's write La Reina's next chapter together," the Tuesday email read.
Esha Chhabra, a La Reina High graduate and board member for the new school, said in a text that the academy wouldn't be able to provide a comment on Thursday.
La Reina Academy's six-decade-old namesake, La Reina High School and Middle School, is set to permanently close at the end of the current school year. The Sisters of Notre Dame, a Catholic religious order that founded and oversees the campus, announced the closure in January, saying declining enrollment and dwindling cash reserves made the school unsustainable.
More: La Reina High to close at end of the year
The new academy, led by current and former La Reina High parents, alumnae and staff, is designed to preserve as much of its predecessor as possible, from ethos to staffing.
Organizers already have in a $6.8-million bid to purchase the former Moorpark Pinecrest School campus at 14100 Peach Hill Road. La Reina Academy board member Laird Wilson said in an April interview that the deal is in escrow.
The academy also has in place basic accreditation, organizers said in emails, and longtime La Reina High School and Middle School dean and English teacher Rebecca Adams has signed on as the new academy's principal.
Students can still enroll for the fall at lareinaacademy.org. Tuition runs between $21,000 to $25,000, with some financial aid available.
Isaiah Murtaugh covers education for the Ventura County Star in partnership with Report for America. Reach him at isaiah.murtaugh@vcstar.com or 805-437-0236 and follow him on Twitter @isaiahmurtaugh and @vcsschools. You can support this work with a tax-deductible donation to Report for America.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: UPDATE: Plans to launch La Reina Academy fall through
