PROVIDENCE – Alan Shawn Feinstein Elementary School at Broad Street and Carl G. Lauro Elementary School were identified late Tuesday as the two city public school buildings that will close next year due to their age and poor physical conditions, according to the Providence Public School District.
The official details came after representatives from the Providence Teachers Union tweeted over the weekend that the district and the R.I. Department of Education decided to close some schools after discussions dating back to earlier this fall, and claimed that the district and RIDE had yet to inform the union and the community at-large about the upcoming closures.
According to the district, both the Lauro and Feinstein school buildings have a combined age of older than 222 years and are consistently rated among the “worst facilities in the city.” District officials also said it would cost approximately $95 million to properly upgrade the two buildings to modern standards.
Additionally, enrollment has dropped over the last decade at the Lauro and Feinstein. District officials said enrollment at Feinstein decreased by 40% over the last 10 years, while there has been a 50% decline in enrollment at Lauro in that same period. RIDE enrollment data shows 475 students were enrolled in Lauro as of October and 277 were attending Feinstein.
No staffers from the two schools will be laid off once the buildings close next year, PPSD said. The district will offer support sessions between Jan. 30 and Feb. 1 for staffers looking to be obtain a new position within PPSD. Families impacted by the Lauro and Feinstein closures will also be asked to fill out preference forms to help choose new schools for their children and those families, the district said, will receive their new school assignment “as quickly as possible.”
PPSD representatives did not immediately respond to questions Wednesday from Providence Business News if the students and staff moving to new schools will be permanent or if there will be new future school buildings to replace the current Lauro and Feinstein structures.
Also, Gilbert Stuart Middle School will close at the end of the 2024-25 academic year. Enrollment there will be phased out over the next few years to allow construction of a new pre-kindergarten campus in the vicinity of Stuart, the district said. An opening date for the new Stuart school building has not yet been determined by the district.
The closures announcement was part of the district explaining its next phase of the $500 million plan to rebuild school buildings across the city that are in poor condition. A slew of renovations and new city school buildings are set to come online between this spring and the fall of 2025.
The city’s new Narducci Pre-Kindergarten-through-8 Learning Center – formerly the Windmill Street School – and the $20 million renovation to Hope High School’s auditorium are set to open this spring, per PPSD. Next fall, the renovated William D’Abate Elementary School and a new Pre-Kindergarten-through-8 Spaziano campus will open for students and staff.
Come spring 2024, renovations to Classical High School and Pleasant View Elementary School will be done and ready to open, PPSD said. New Mary Fogarty and Harry Kizirian school campuses will open in the fall of 2025.
There will also be a $50 million capital revolving fund in partnership with the city to address basic facility needs district-wide such as boilers, gym floors and building improvements, PPSD said.
“After decades of neglect and systemic failure, we are finally getting our students and educators out of century-old schools and into the modern buildings they deserve,” PPSD Superintendent Javier Montañez said in a statement. “This historic $500 million investment will truly transform our schools and the way students learn.”
James Bessette is the PBN special projects editor, and also covers the nonprofit and education sectors. You may reach him at Bessette@PBN.com. You may also follow him on Twitter at @James_Bessette.
Great move by RIDE.