School avoids eviction

[Nané]

Owner, principal of Armenian school says it isn’t in any danger of closing.

 

By Zain Shauk

Published: Last Updated Monday, August 3, 2009 10:15 PM PDT

 

NORTHWEST GLENDALE — The owner of Scholars Armenian School and Arts Center on Monday said she was confident that a bankruptcy trial would not affect the campus after she made good on a $123,000 payment to avoid eviction.

 

She owed the money for unpaid rent since declaring bankruptcy in May after failing to make other rent payments.

 

Still, Scholars Principal and owner Anahit Grigoryan has continued to refuse paying nearly $200,000 in rent after funding a cleanup of toxic mold and asbestos, which should have been the responsibility of landlord Alex Kuiumdjian, she said.

 

Kuiumdjian’s attorney, Frank Rubin, argues that Grigoryan made expensive property changes without first asking the landlord, who would have done it on his own, making her responsible for the rent.

 

Rubin added that Grigoryan didn’t bring up the mold until she was already in debt, a charge she denies.

 

“It was all after rent was due,” Rubin said.

 

Grigoryan has filed a separate lawsuit to resolve the issue, alleging that Kuiumdjian had rented the property after falsely claiming it was free of hazardous materials, specifically mold, according to the lease agreement and court documents.

 

She was confident that the school would continue uninterrupted, regardless of the court proceedings.

 

“I’m not a lawyer, but I do know the law,” said Grigoryan, a former professor at UCLA and universities in Russia and Armenia.

 

She had already invested more than $500,000 into the property at 1021 Grandview Ave. before discovering the mold while venturing into the basement, making a move from the site unreasonable, she said.

 

Grigoryan has insisted that Kuiumdjian gave her license to “do whatever you want” while making facility improvements.

 

Additionally, the potential of mold in the basement, she said, could have presented a danger to her students, whom she did not notify of the problem because the school was closed when it was discovered and cleared.

 

When Grigoryan proceeded to contract the cleanup work herself, workers discovered asbestos and embarked on a sweeping effort to remove the dangerous matter before students returned.

 

The cleanup added to her makeover of the building, which cost more than $1.5 million, she said.

 

Rubin argued that the basement was not within the parameters of Grigoryan’s lease and that she should not have moved into the area and made changes without permission.

 

The 45,000-square-foot site now includes hardwood floors, accent walls and modern school equipment, while also being a healthy environment, she said.

 

Some worried parents, after hearing about the school’s debt, have withdrawn plans to send their children there in the fall, but Scholars has never been in serious danger of closing, she said.

 

Grigoryan has been able to keep her operation growing using funds from colleagues in Armenia, she said.

 

Her move to declare bankruptcy was mostly a maneuver to stay an eviction notice that had been levied after a civil court ruled Grigoryan was responsible for six months of unpaid rent, despite the continuing fraud suit, she said.

 

The school now expects to have about 230 students in the fall, down from 250, and will be able to pay the $44,000 monthly rent, despite tuition revenues of $72,000 that are weighed down by a $69,000 monthly payroll, Grigoryan said.

 

The sheer value of Scholars’ current expenses means that it will continue to be dependent on Armenian contributors for support as it works to become a standout institution, she said.

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

ZAIN SHAUK covers education, business and politics. He may be reached at (818) 637-3238 or by e-mail at zain.shauk@latimes.com.

 

Copyright © 2009 - Glendale News Press

 

[MosJan]

tsavali e

[Arpa]

tsavali e

Ayo Movses "tsavali"e, bayts aveli AMOTALI, yerb Hay@ Hayoun e shinum qani chen karogh furkin mar@ shullel.

[MosJan]

iy mard qez el toghnen shineluts xoses...

[Zartonk]

iy mard qez el toghnen shineluts xoses...

 

Vay meram ay mart

 

[MosJan]

iy Zartonq jan mi hin xosq ka asem qez - Fishing is like Shinel: The less you get, the more you Talk

 

hima mer papikna: gnalov el aveli shat e xosum shinelu masin / yev shinelov arants hashiv talu te ove kardum inchuu e kardum, ov k@neghana ov chi neghvi... shinuma ach te dzax

 

[Arpa]

Ov e tesnum or "shinel" yev "shnanal" (adultury) are synomyous and sound-a-like?

Tes Yelits/Exodus girq 20/14 "Shnutiun mi aner"

The inchu ayd gotdz@ shnutiun e kochvel?

Shuner@ yerb yev vortegh en hartstrel yev vorits neroghutiun khndrel nakh qan ayd gorts@?

[MosJan]

ahha xndrem Geli glxin Avetaran en KArdum asuma shut areq Hot@ Sarn antsav ...

[Zartonk]

Che Mosjan, kartses gel chi. Shnutyan masin a khosq@

[MosJan]

Zartonq jan ir araji xosq@ Shinelu masin e

[MosJan]

vstah iys patmutyun@ mi yerkrod yeres el kunena.. hetaqrqir k@liner lsel tan tiroj koghmin

[MosJan]

mek le mi hetaqrqir mas kar vor@ mi qich tsitsagheli e

 

"Grigoryan has been able to keep her operation growing using funds from colleagues in Armenia, she said."

 

colleagues in Armenia barekam HAyastani usucichneri 99% 1000 yev mek anoreni xagh en xaghum vor mi qani $$ tun tanen, is ahha mer Anahit@ der dram e stanum Hayastani ir koleganerits..

 

[MosJan]

@est http://www.greatschools.net/cgi-bin/ca/private/23872

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Glendale's Scholars Armenian School and Art Center is a private school. It serves 97 students in grades K-9.

 

Parents have reviewed this school and given it an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars.

 

 

97 ashxakertner ?? yev iydqan tsaxs ?? xerj tsnoghner

 

 

 

[MosJan]

Glendale Armenian School Owner and Armenian Landlord Battle Eviction in Court

[ 2009/08/04 | 17:18 ] diaspora http://hetq.am/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/04_08-gnp_grigoryan.jpgToday’s edition of the Glendale News Press reports on an on-going and somewhat nasty court battle between the principal of a local Armenian day school and the Armenian landlord of the propert over rent and other issues that have threatened the school’s future operation. Here’s the article:

 

The owner of Scholars Armenian School and Arts Center on Monday said she was confident that a bankruptcy trial would not affect the campus after she made good on a $123,000 payment to avoid eviction.

 

She owed the money for unpaid rent since declaring bankruptcy in May after failing to make other rent payments.

 

Still, Scholars Principal and owner Anahit Grigoryan has continued to refuse paying nearly $200,000 in rent after funding a cleanup of toxic mold and asbestos, which should have been the responsibility of landlord Alex Kuiumdjian, she said.

 

Kuiumdjian’s attorney, Frank Rubin, argues that Grigoryan made expensive property changes without first asking the landlord, who would have done it on his own, making her responsible for the rent.

 

Rubin added that Grigoryan didn’t bring up the mold until she was already in debt, a charge she denies.

 

“It was all after rent was due,” Rubin said.

 

Grigoryan has filed a separate lawsuit to resolve the issue, alleging that Kuiumdjian had rented the property after falsely claiming it was free of hazardous materials, specifically mold, according to the lease agreement and court documents.

 

She was confident that the school would continue uninterrupted, regardless of the court proceedings.

 

“I’m not a lawyer, but I do know the law,” said Grigoryan, a former professor at UCLA and universities in Russia and Armenia.

 

She had already invested more than $500,000 into the property at 1021 Grandview Ave. before discovering the mold while venturing into the basement, making a move from the site unreasonable, she said.

 

Grigoryan has insisted that Kuiumdjian gave her license to “do whatever you want” while making facility improvements.

 

Additionally, the potential of mold in the basement, she said, could have presented a danger to her students, whom she did not notify of the problem because the school was closed when it was discovered and cleared.

 

When Grigoryan proceeded to contract the cleanup work herself, workers discovered asbestos and embarked on a sweeping effort to remove the dangerous matter before students returned.

 

The cleanup added to her makeover of the building, which cost more than $1.5 million, she said.

 

Rubin argued that the basement was not within the parameters of Grigoryan’s lease and that she should not have moved into the area and made changes without permission.

 

The 45,000-square-foot site now includes hardwood floors, accent walls and modern school equipment, while also being a healthy environment, she said.

 

Some worried parents, after hearing about the school’s debt, have withdrawn plans to send their children there in the fall, but Scholars has never been in serious danger of closing, she said.

 

Grigoryan has been able to keep her operation growing using funds from colleagues in Armenia, she said.

 

Her move to declare bankruptcy was mostly a maneuver to stay an eviction notice that had been levied after a civil court ruled Grigoryan was responsible for six months of unpaid rent, despite the continuing fraud suit, she said.

 

The school now expects to have about 230 students in the fall, down from 250, and will be able to pay the $44,000 monthly rent, despite tuition revenues of $72,000 that are weighed down by a $69,000 monthly payroll, Grigoryan said.

 

The sheer value of Scholars’ current expenses means that it will continue to be dependent on Armenian contributors for support as it works to become a standout institution, she said.

 

 

[MosJan]

Los Angeles Judge Orders Temporary Closure of Armenian School

[ 2010/09/09 | 16:06 ] diasporaSafety violations cited; children must be transferred

 

Families who enrolled their children at the private Armenian school that was shut down by a temporary court order last week must immediately switch schools, officials said.

 

Scholars Academic Foundation, a K-12 campus in La Crescenta, was forbidden from holding any classes at its site on Foothill Boulevard after city officials said it failed to obtain the required building and safety permits to operate a school there.

 

A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge issued a temporary restraining order that closed the school Sept. 1, and state education law requires families switch schools whenever a campus is closed.

 

The temporary injunction that closed the Foothill Boulevard campus is scheduled to be revisited at a court hearing Sept. 17, but even in the interim, state law is clear that students must be enrolled in an instructional program, said officials in Glendale and Burbank school districts who oversee attendance, transfers and academic records.

 

“The bottom line is parents must enroll their children immediately in a full-time public school program upon closure of [or] removal from a private school,” Margo Minecki, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County Office of Education, said in an e-mail. “There’s no waiting period.”

 

The school owner and operator, Anahit Grigoryan, said parents at her school were informed that they were free to enroll elsewhere, but she said she was confident they would return when a new school opens in Glendale or another city with the proper paperwork and permits.

 

“We don’t have any problems with education, the problem was with the building,” she said. “I’m pretty sure that because our school is very, very good, with high [academic] standards, that’s why our parents are very loyal.”

 

She said the school would open with the same name, but declined to discuss potential locations.

 

“We didn’t stop anything. We are just moving our school to another city, to another very proper place,” she said.

 

A closed school is legally bound to inform parents they must enroll elsewhere, according to state law and the Los Angeles County Office of Education. But state law puts the legal onus on parents to ensure their children are enrolled appropriately, officials said.

 

“[Families] risk being in volition of education code, which says school-age children must be enrolled in school,” said Alex Rojas, director of student services in Glendale Unified. “The longer the kids sit out, they’re missing instructional time.”

 

When an earlier iteration of the school vacated a building on Grandview Avenue, a rush of students poured into Burbank Unified, but records were hard to come by.

 

“We won’t know these kids exist, that’s the sad thing,” said Tom Steele, student services director for Burbank Unified. “There’s no real way for me to find these kids.”

 

State law does not describe penalties for schools that do not cooperate with exiting families and school districts that will receive them, Minecki said.

 

“The burden of enrollment is on the parent, but the private school should take the initiative and contact the school district to ensure a good transition for its students,” she said in an e-mail.

 

Scholars Academic Foundation is a different entity than Scholars Armenian School and Arts Center, which used to be on Grandview Avenue and owned by Grigoryan through Noble Armenians Inc. The company filed bankruptcy and continues its litigation against the Grandview Avenue property owner, his attorney said.

 

Max Zibert

 

Glendale News Press