PROVIDENCE – A new report released Wednesday by Mayor Brett P. Smiley’s office highlights where some community stakeholders stand on how the state’s intervention of the Providence Public School District has gone to date.
Based on the report’s results, city residents are not liking what they are seeing.
City officials on Wednesday unveiled the
2024 Community Engagement on Education Report, highlighting community feedback on the state of PPSD since the state took over the district in November 2019. Feedback from close to 1,200 local people, including students and families, was gathered through surveys from June to December 2024 to help the city create a plan to resume control of PPSD.
The report also comes out after Feb. 10 when Gov. Daniel J. McKee and education leaders – including R.I. Education Commissioner Angélica Infante-Green said PPSD
could return to local control by 2026, if certain conditions are met. The R.I. Department of Education currently has control over PPSD until no later than 2027.
While state officials have stated previously that PPSD has shown signs of progress since the takeover, particularly with student performance, the community feels otherwise, according to the report. The study states community members feel there is “a failure” align curricula and testing with meaningful educational objectives; an inability to adequately fund schools; low standards for student achievement; inadequate support from teachers for students; and insufficient support from school leadership, PPSD and the state for teachers.
The report states that 58% of respondents feel PPSD schools are moving in the “wrong direction” under RIDE’s intervention, while just 17% felt PPSD is on the right track. Fifty-one percent of respondents “disagree” when asked if PPSD has the right budget priorities to implement its turnaround action plan. Also, 35% of respondents were “neutral” on the budget priority question, which, the report states, “may highlight a lack of clarity about how PPSD and RIDE budgeting practices have changed since 2019.”
Plus, close to half of the surveyed stakeholders – 42% – want the schools back into local control “right now,” compared with just 10% saying PPSD should stay under state control. Many respondents, per the report, felt PPSD “has failed” to make progress on various turnaround plan goals, including every student having access to robust programming and benefiting from a responsive administration.
On Feb. 10, McKee said publicly that returning control to the city right away would be a “disservice to the community of students, families and educators.” He said both the state and city need more time to plan and prepare to give the schools back to the city in the best way possible.
RIDE spokesperson Victor Morente in an email Wednesday to Providence Business News said most respondents “actually support” the state still overseeing PPSD over a rushed process. The report states 45% either said they wanted the school returned to city control via a phased approach or “once all the schools have improved.”
Morente also called it “notable” the report made no mention of the COVID-19 pandemic’s impacts on the district and how learning was “upended globally.” He also said it is “not surprising” that funding was the respondents’ top concern considering local funding was historically not addressed by the bity until R.I. Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Lanphear ruled back in November that the city violated the Crowley Act. The act requires for municipal funding for school districts under state intervention must be increased by the same percentage as the increase in statewide school aid.
The city has since reached a settlement to owe the district an additional $26.5 million over the next three fiscal years.
Providence School Superintendent Javier Montañez in a letter expressed concern the report “relies mainly on anecdotal feedback” and “disregards key student data. His letter notes how 59% of city schools have a 2-star rating or higher, chronic absentee rates dropping from year to year, 70% of multilingual learners meeting annual ACCESS assessment targets and improved graduation rates, among other data.
“As a community, we must celebrate the successes of our educators and students,” Montañez wrote. “I value the voice of our students, families, staff, and the greater community. My leadership team will continue to work closely with the community to move our district forward.”
The report also notes the state’s intervention of PPSD has caused families and students to “experience chaos and confusion” stemming from “communication failures. Students, the report states, are “distrustful” that all leaders both locally and at the state level are collaborating to improve student experiences. Caregivers also “do not feel there are adequate pathways” to get involved in improving PPSD, the report said.
“Community members – especially students – feel decision makers at all levels fail to hear, understand, and act upon their concerns. This frustration runs deep and will take years of work to regain the community’s trust,” the report states. “Many of these concerns are rooted in a lack of understanding about different entities’ … responsibilities and how the community can hold each one accountable.”
Even Smiley and City Council President Rachel Miller criticized state leaders on Feb. 12 on the 2026 return plan announcement, claiming the state has not been transparent with city leadership. They claimed they only heard about the plan “from the press.” Smiley was also not in attendance at Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary School for the Feb. 10 announcement event.
Neither RIDE’s response nor Montañez’s letter directly answered questions from PBN if there is a communication gap between the state and city on the PPSD turnaround.
Moving forward, the city will continue hosting Community Conversations on Education to maintain accountability on progress and receive feedback and ideas, the report states. The city will also partner with local organizations to host “more focused conversations” on issues and opportunities for PPSD.
The report also says the city in April will release its transition plan, outlining key measures on how it will assume PPSD control. Core areas will focus on governance, finances, operations, facilities, and opportunities for collaboration between PPSD and RIDE.
“There is much more work to be done and the city plans to continue listening to community members,” the report states, “and helping engage all community members with improving student outcomes and return to local control planning.”
(UPDATED throughout to include comments from R.I. Department of Education spokesperson Victor Morente and Providence School Superintendent Javier Montañez.)
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 X at @James_Bessette.
