Pennsylvania High School Puts Itself on eBay

Cash-strapped school for troubled teens tries 'Hail Mary pass'
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 3, 2012 1:24 AM CDT
Updated Jul 3, 2012 1:53 AM CDT
Pennsylvania High School Puts Itself on Ebay
The Learning Center school in Langhorne, Pa. hopes to raise funds by putting itself up for auction on eBay.    (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

A Philadelphia-area high school has put itself on eBay to offset crippling budget cuts. The Learning Center—an alternative school for at-risk teens—describes itself as "slightly used but extremely successful" in the listing, ABC reports. The buyer won't get the school itself, which belongs to the Neshaminy School District, but will get naming rights, the opportunity to deliver a speech at graduation, tickets to two football games, and a large pizza—as well as "the good vibe of securing the future of so many otherwise lost young souls," the listing says.

The starting bid is $599,595, the exact amount needed to keep the school open next year. "I know it's crazy," says the school's principal. "But with the good The Learning Center does, it's crazier not to do it." The idea came from 17-year-old student Casey Young, who attended the school for a year before returning to a regular high school. "Casey kept saying, 'What if, like, Bill Gates reacted or some guy shows it to a billionaire who had trouble as a teenager?'" his father explained. "It was realistic that if it did get attention, that someone would put up that money. It's like throwing a Hail Mary pass. It's a long shot, but sometimes they play out." (More high school stories.)

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