HuffPost reports that WeGrow, WeWork’s private Manhattan school for kids ages 3-9 that opened in 2018, will close after this school year. WeWork has faced tumult recently in the aftermath of a failed IPO, an investor exodus, and a takeover announcement from parent company SoftBank. WeGrow opened in Chelsea last September and featured open classroom plans, natural light, and a unique curriculum that balanced traditional schoolwork with athletics like yoga and martial arts, as well as weekly field trips to an upstate farm to learn how to plant and harvest crops. Rebekah Neumann, co-founder of WeWork and CEO Adam Neumann’s husband, had helmed the school’s programs and focused on helping kids learn through play and interaction.
WeGrow’s tuition cost parents between $22,000-42,000 per year, depending on their student’s age. By its second year of operation, the student body had grown to 100 kids. But parents will have to put their dollars towards a different school next fall–though, as 6sqft.com reports, one parent has been quoted as saying that “Parents and administrators are exploring all options to keep WeGrow open.”
WeWork explained in a statement that it will be closing WeGrow to focus on its core businesses rather than education.
“As part of the company’s efforts to focus on its core business, WeWork has informed the families of WeGrow students that we will not operate WeGrow after this school year,” the statement read. “WeWork and the families of WeGrow students are engaging in discussions with interested parties regarding plans for WeGrow for the following school year.”
