The foundation that operates the Crotched Mountain School has announced it will shut down its campus by the end of the year.
The school, located in the town of Greenfield, serves young people with developmental and behavioral disabilities through residential and day programs. The campus also includes a residential program for adults with disabilities.
About 350 staff at Crotched Mountain Schoolwill be affected by the Greenfield school’s closure.
That includes school staff and those who provide direct care to students and residents with disabilities.
Ned Olney is the president and CEO of Crotched Mountain Foundation. He says the school is offering staff severance pay as an incentive to stay in their jobs through the beginning of November.
“We’re working with providers in the social services industry here to help provide a bridge so they can see us through here till when we turn the lights off, but also know that they have another job to move to,” he said.
About a third of the school’s workforce are refugees who live in Concord, Nashua, and Manchester.
In a statement, Olney said the cost of running a large campus had proven unsustainable, and the coronavirus pandemic forced the school to suspend enrollment and increase spending on safety measures.
The school said it will work with school districts and state agencies to find new treatment options for its students.
The school's history stretches back to 1953, with the opening of Crotched Mountain Rehabilitation Center, which treated people with polio.
