The Heiskell School Closing in Buckhead After 65 Years

The Heiskell School's director announced that the school would close after 65 years in the Buckhead community.

Cyndie Heiskell, who has been the director of the The Heiskell School since 2001, posted the announcement on the school's website.

"The decision has been made to let this wonderful school year – many have said that it had been the best – be the last as The Heiskell School," Heiskell said. "The Heiskell School has been a haven for 65 years, and we have many reasons to give thanks."

See Also: Read Cyndie Heiskell's Full Letter on The Heiskell School's Closing

Attempts to contact the school and its director have been unsuccessful.

Her note also acknowledged that parents need to make plans for their children's education next year, offering assurances that the school will work with them on recommendations and transcripts.

"At the same time we are notifying other independent and Christian schools that they now have an opportunity to enroll some of the finest students we have ever had the privilege to serve," Heiskell said.

The Heiskell School had its beginnings when Cyndie Heiskell's parents, Miriam and Jim Heiskell, got the news in 1948 that her 5-year-old brother, Andy Heiskell, was in a coma, paralyzed by polio, according to the school's website.

Andy was not expected to live through the night, and if he did, it was unlikely he would walk again. His family prayed and " asked God to use this debilitating illness to His glory."

Andy not only defied medical odds and survived, he fully recovered and was a champion high school and college track star.

As Andy continued his recovery in the summer of 1949, his mother established a small preschool in her home to give him an opportunity to learn and play with other children after months of isolation. That was the beginning of The Heiskell School.

The school has offered an independent, nondenominational preschool education since 1949. It opened its doors to elementary and junior high students two decades later. Today the school has enrolled boys and girls in its preschool (two years through pre-first), elementary school (first through fifth grades) and junior high (sixth grade through eighth grade) programs.

It is located at 3260 Northside Drive in Buckhead.

Tuition at The Heiskell School for the 2013-2014 school year for five days a week attendance ranged from $7,600 for the Builders, Explorers and Pre-K programs, to $13,600 for Pre-first to 5th and $14,200 for grades 6-8. 

Do your children attend The Heiskell School? How does this affect your family? Tell us in the comments below.