PROVIDENCE – A charter school serving students from Woonsocket, Burrillville and North Smithfield has been approved for $15 million in state funding toward construction a new high school, one of 55 school projects green-lighted statewide, according to an announcement this week by the Rhode Island Council on Elementary and Secondary Education.
RISE Prep Academies will fund 65 percent of the roughly $51 million building project, approved by the council as recommended by Rhode Island Commissioner of Education Angélica Infante-Green as part of the Rhode Island Department of Education’s Necessity of School Construction process.
The school, a charter facility established in 2015, announced plans to acquire the former Lady of Victories elementary school on Spring Street in Woonsocket in April, with the property to serve as a new home for its upper academies. RISE plans to demolish the former Catholic school, closed in 2009, and build a new, 70,000-square-foot 9-12 academy on the 1.51 acre city property.
RISE currently educates students in grades kindergarten through 10, with a growth strategy that will see additional grades levels added over the next two school years, for a completed model to serve students through grade 12. Students in grades 9 and 10 are currently housed at the Boys & Girls Club, while younger grades attend the school’s main facility on Social Street.
Enrollment from the three northern Rhode Island towns that RISE serves is determined via a lottery of applicants, and North Smithfield residents must attend 8th grade at RISE Prep to be eligible to attend the upper academy.
Once both the construction and the school’s growth plan are complete, the new building is expected to house 400 students. The three-story upper academy will include 26 classrooms, as well as space for small-group learning, art and music rooms, and counseling and career guidance. It will also feature a cafeteria, assembly space, and a gymnasium, all surrounded by a courtyard. The building is expected to use an air-source pump system for heating, ventilation, and air conditioning, operating without the use of fossil fuels.
The school construction project is expected to break ground in April, with an opening tentatively scheduled for July of 2027.
The $15,423,147 in state funding, to be supplemented with a bond for construction, was approved following a multi-stage application that required facility assessment and creation of a master plan. The council approved a total of $376,829,571 in funds for various school projects in Rhode Island at a public meeting on Monday, Jan. 5.
A release noted that the investments will benefit more than 27,800 students across the state.
“Collectively, these initiatives aim to modernize facilities, improve safety, and support high-quality learning environments for thousands of students statewide,” the release noted.
“Supporting education and our youth is a top priority for my administration, and I am pleased that the Council on Elementary and Secondary Education has cleared the way for millions of dollars in school facility investments,” said Gov. Dan McKee. “When students are excited about their learning spaces, have the right supports, and are deeply engaged, they are more likely to show up and thrive.”
“Rhode Island students deserve modern, innovative spaces that foster learning, growth, and excellence,” said Infante-Green. “With the council’s approval of millions in funding for school construction upgrades and new projects across the state, we are taking a significant step toward ensuring equitable access to high-quality educational facilities. We look forward to partnering with local school communities as we continue transforming our school buildings into environments that inspire success.”
I’m curious about the draw of RISE Prep for Burrillville families. Looking at the state data, Steere Farm actually seems to be the stronger school. It’s a bit harder to judge the middle school since those numbers aren’t separated at RISE, but from what I can see, the results look about the same.
It’s the same deal with every charter school. They have ritzy marketing, call their students something fancy like “scholars”. They always show a lot of promise at first, because you have highly selective parents who care deeply about education sending their kids, so you have a small, tight group of very high achievers.
Then as the charter school gets bigger and tries attracting more people, the scores inevitably start dropping. You see it with basically every single charter school.