Last week, parents of students at Atlanta’s New Birth Christian Academy, founded by Bishop Eddie Long, got some surprising news.

In a letter, the academy announced that after 18 years the private school, founded by the scandal-plagued mega-church leader, would be “temporarily” closing its doors.

The school’s “funding estimates fall far short of our projected needs. It is a very sad occasion, as the NBCA board has made the tough decision to temporarily close the school,” the letter, signed by the board’s vice chairman Carlton Donald, stated.

Tuition at the institution is $5,253 annually for members of Long’s New Birth Missionary Baptist Church and $6,198 for nonmembers, according to the school’s Web site.

The move will leave 221 pre-K through 12th grade students school-less following Christmas break, though the academy vowed in the note to help the students find other schools.

The closure comes at the end of a rough year for Eddie and has left many wondering if the bishop’s well-publicized personal issues are negatively affecting his church.

Back in May, Long settled sexual coercion lawsuits brought against him by four young men who accused him of using his authority to seduce them; and just this month his longtime wife, Vanessa, filed for divorce after 21 years of marriage. Following this announcement, Long told his church that he’d be taking a hiatus from his duties to deal with “family business.”
 

—Hortense Barber

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