Last week, LIIF Deputy Director Jonny Newburgh of the National Community Facilities Lending team was in Smyrna, Georgia to celebrate the ribbon-cutting of Amana Academy’s West Campus, a charter school project financed in part by LIIF that’s been years in the making.
The opening of Amana West’s permanent home near Truist Park was attended by representatives from the State Charter School Commission, RedefinED Atlanta, and the Lanier Family Foundation. During her opening remarks, Amana’s CFO specifically recognized LIIF’s role in making the project possible from the very beginning.
Here’s a timeline for how we got here:
- 2020 — LIIF closed a Bond Guarantee Program loan with Amana Academy to refinance debt on its flagship Alpharetta campus.
- 2022 — Building on that success, Amana opened a replication school, Amana West, at a Girl Scouts property in Mableton, GA.
- 2023 — LIIF provided a letter of intent and term sheet to finance a permanent home for Amana West in Smyrna.
- 2024 — LIIF closed an acquisition and construction loan that enabled Amana West to install permanent modular classrooms and open on-site that September.
- 2026 — Equitable Facilities Fund (EFF), a leading charter school lender backed by the Walton Family Foundation, provided permanent financing that took out LIIF’s loan and enabled completion of the full campus rehabilitation.
Amana West is only EFF’s second Georgia school, but students’ results speak for themselves: Amana West exceeded its authorizer’s academic performance benchmarks in both the 2023-24 and 2024-25 school years, demonstrating strong student achievement and growth. On the financial side, the transaction earned an Impact Score of 14 and an Impact Tier rating of Standout, proof that mission and performance can move together.
And the story isn’t finished: Amana’s leadership is already exploring a second replication school, which could open as early as 2028. As the partner who helped finance and deliver the West campus from day one, LIIF is proud to be positioned as an early call when they’re ready to move forward.
Congratulations to Amana Academy, Amana West, and everyone in Smyrna who came out to celebrate. This is what long-term partnership in charter school facilities looks like.