Duré named new CEO of Rhode Island Mayoral Academies

PROVIDENCE – Elsa Duré has been named CEO of the Rhode Island Mayoral Academies, effective Sept. 1.

Duré, currently chief of policy and expansion at RIMA, replaces Michael Magee, now CEO at Chiefs for Change, a national nonprofit organization.
She described herself as a daughter of immigrants and as an English language learner who grew up in an urban community.
“The truth is that it’s rare for a child who looks like me and is defined like me to thrive, because our systems and structures are not always able to meet their needs. I succeeded by chance, when I should have succeeded by design,” Duré said in a statement. “My passion in life is ensuring that more children succeed by design. RIMA is well positioned to help make that happen, and it’s an honor to build upon the passionate dedication and work of Mike Magee.”
Magee co-founded RIMA with Lt. Gov. Daniel J. McKee, the former mayor of Cumberland, in 2009, in response to the question, “What kind of public school system would we have if we could build it from scratch?”
Since then, the nonprofit organization has helped launch regional public schools of choice with mayor-led boards that will serve 2,000 students from racially and socioeconomically diverse backgrounds this fall.
Magee said he is confident that Duré will lead Rhode Island Mayoral Academies into the future.
“Elsa’s in-depth knowledge of policy and her drive to improve the lives of all R.I. children by supporting high-quality charter schools, partnering with districts and community-based organizations, and advocating for universally excellent, equitable education, makes her the perfect fit to oversee RIMA’s evolution,” he said. “I look forward to watching her lead mayoral academies into its next stage of development – one that is deeply focused on collaboration and community-building, while maintaining an unyielding commitment to excellence.”

Duré holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s degree in urban education policy from Brown University.
Rhode Island Mayoral Academies serves urban and non-urban communities across Rhode Island.
This past year, RIMA schools had 3,589 applications for 598 available seats. Blackstone Valley Prep Mayoral Academy, the first mayoral academy, outperformed the state in every grade level in reading and mathematics on the most recently published state assessments, according to RIMA. First-graders at Achievement First Providence Mayoral Academy read on average at a second-grade level, according to RIMA. Achievement First Illuminar and RISE Prep mayoral academies open for this school year, RIMA said.

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