Mount Rainier Lutheran High School is seeking a new home for the 2013-14 school year.
The school, now in its ninth year of operation, is located at 7306 Waller Road E. in Tacoma.
But incoming Principal Sarah Elliott said the building is being sold by its landlord, and another school has made an offer on it.
“We will be in our current location for another year,” said Elliott, who will replace retiring Principal Steve Thomas on July 1. “We are actively pursuing alternate locations.”
Elliott said Mount Rainier would like to stay in the same neighborhood or as close as possible. That would make it easier to maintain ties with Concordia Lutheran Schools, its preschool-through-eighth-grade sister school. Concordia is at 202 E. 56th St.
“We have a number of families who have both elementary and high school students,” she said.
The 107-student high school spent its first two years in a church basement before moving to its Waller Road home.
The school has had some financial difficulties. Elliott said that several years ago, someone at the school “made some poor decisions” and “was not accountable for spending.”
In response, she said, the school’s board stepped up oversight of school finances. Mount Rainier families who are concerned about the budget are invited to review the school’s most recent audit.
“We are operating a balanced budget,” Elliott said. “We are in the black. We are in the best financial shape we have ever been in.”
Elliott said the school is actively recruiting students for the 2012-13 year.
She said Mount Rainier is more than just a building and that families love both the educational program and the Christian ministry that the school offers.
“We are encouraged in spite of changing locations,” she said. “We are moving forward.”
debbie.cafazzo@thenewstribune.com253-597-8635
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