Oprah Winfrey has donated $1.5 million to a private middle school in Atlanta, The Associated Press said Thursday. The Ron Clark Academy, located in an impoverished section of the inner-city, has struggled to raise money this year amid the sagging economy.

Winfrey, who has had school founder Ron Clark on her show twice, donated $365,000 to the school last December. Clark wrote the best-selling teaching book The Essential 55.

The school is hoping to expand its campus by building a cafeteria, gymnasium, and theater.