Rhode Island's Charter Public Schools

Rhode Island's charter schools are public schools authorized by the State of Rhode Island to operate independently from many state and local district rules and regulations. Each charter public school is able to establish educational strategies that meet the specific student achievement goals and objectives outlined in each school's charter.

Rhode Island General Law 16-77-5.1(b) designates the Council on Elementary and Secondary Education (the Council) as the authorizer for charter schools. In this capacity, the Council is responsible for charter school approval, renewal and revocation. RIDE is delegated with the authority and responsibility to manage a comprehensive system of charter school accountability, review, monitoring, and system management. With the support of RIDE’s charter team, the Council plays a fundamental role in maintaining and advancing the quality and accountability of the charter sector.

Rhode Island is one of only seven states in which the SEA, in conjunction with the State's Board of Education, is the sole authorizer. As the sole authorizer, the Council bears substantial responsibility for balancing the statutory goal of increased autonomy of charter schools against the accountability required by the state and federal authorities.

About Charter Public Schools

  • District Charter Schools: Schools created by existing public schools, groups of public school personnel, public school districts, or a group of school districts.
  • Independent Charter Schools: Schools created by: (i) Rhode Island nonprofit organizations provided that these nonprofit organizations shall have existed for at least two (2) years and must exist for a substantial reason other than to operate a school or (ii) Colleges or universities within the State of Rhode Island.
  • Mayoral Academies: Schools created by a mayor of any city or town within the State of Rhode Island, acting by or through a nonprofit organization (regardless of the time said nonprofit organization is in existence) to establish a mayoral academy.

The charter public school differs from the traditional public school in the following ways:

  • Autonomy: Charter public schools are created and governed by independent boards and operated separately from the policies of traditional school districts. In exchange for this autonomy, the state has certain expectations.
  • Accountability: Charter public schools are held accountable for meeting student achievement goals and face charter revocation if they under-perform.
  • Choice: Charter public schools provide choice for parents and students seeking alternatives to traditional public education.
  • Innovation: Charter public schools are expected to be vanguards in improving and expanding opportunities within public education.

Rhode Island charter public schools are free and open to the public. Use the Family Information Tool (FIT) to search through the charter public school options available in Rhode Island. Explore academic programs, compare schools and find more information within each school’s profile. Information for every Rhode Island charter public school can be found in the Family Information Tool.

 

NAME GRADES (SY23-24) GRADES
(AUTHORIZED)		 LOCATION ENROLLING COMMUNITIES
Achievement First Providence Mayoral Academy Elementary K-4 K-4 370 Hartford Avenue
Providence, RI		 Cranston,
North Providence,
Providence,
Warwick
Achievement First Providence Mayoral Academy Middle 5-8 5-8 370 Hartford Avenue 
Providence, RI 		 Cranston,
North Providence,
Providence,
Warwick
Achievement First Providence Mayoral Academy High  9-11  9-12 315 Laurel Hill Avenue
Providence, RI 		 Cranston, North Providence, Providence, Warwick
Achievement First Iluminar Mayoral Academy Elementary  K-4 K-4 85 Garfield Avenue
Cranston, RI		 Cranston,
North Providence,
Providence,
Warwick
Achievement First Iluminar Mayoral Academy Middle 5-8 5-8   85 Garfield Avenue
Cranston, RI		 Cranston, 
North Providence,
Providence,
Warwick
Achievement First Promesa Mayoral Academy Elementary   K-4 K-4 234 Daboll Street 
Providence, RI  		 Cranston, 
North Providence,
Providence,
Warwick
Achievement First Envision Mayoral Academy Elementary  K-3  K-4 370 Hartford Avenue
Providence, RI 		 Providence, North Providence
Apprenticeship Exploration School (AES) 9-12 9-12 4 Sharpe Drive
Cranston, RI		 Statewide
Beacon Charter School 9-12 9-12 320 Main Street
Woonsocket, RI		 Statewide
Beacon Founders Academy 6-8 6-8 1 Social Street
Woonsocket, RI		 Statewide
Blackstone Academy Charter School 9-12 9-12 334 Pleasant Street
Pawtucket, RI		 Central Falls, Pawtucket, Providence
Blackstone Valley Prep Mayoral Academy - ES1 K-4 K-4 291 Broad Street
Cumberland, RI		 Central Falls, Cumberland, Lincoln, Pawtucket
Blackstone Valley Prep Mayoral Academy - ES2 K-4 K-4 52 Broad Street
Cumberland, RI		 Central Falls, Cumberland, Lincoln, Pawtucket
Blackstone Valley Prep Mayoral Academy - ES3 K-4 K-4 3357 Mendon Road
Cumberland, RI		 Central Falls, Cumberland, Lincoln, Pawtucket
Blackstone Valley Prep Mayoral Academy - Upper Elementary 5-6 5-6 3 Fairlawn Way
Lincoln, RI		 Central Falls, Cumberland, Lincoln, Pawtucket
Blackstone Valley Prep Mayoral Academy - Junior High 7-8 7-8 909 Lonsdale Avenue 
Central Falls, RI		 Central Falls, Cumberland, Lincoln, Pawtucket
Blackstone Valley Prep Mayoral Academy - HS 9-12 9-12 65 Macondray Street
Cumberland, RI		 Central Falls, Cumberland, Lincoln, Pawtucket
Charette High School 9-12 9-12 335 Westminster St
Providence, RI 		 Providence
Excel Academy  5-6  K-12 622 Woonasquatucket Ave
North Providence, RI 02911 		 Providence, Central Falls, North Providence
Highlander Charter School PK-12 PK-12 Upper School (Grades 7-12)
360 Market Street
Warren, RI

Lower School (Grades PK-6)
42 Lexington Avenue
Providence, RI		 Statewide
Hope Academy K-8 K-8 1000 Eddy Street
Providence, RI		 Providence,
North Providence
International Charter School K-5 K-8 334 Pleasant Street
Pawtucket, RI		 Statewide
Kingston Hill Academy K-5 K-5 850 Stony Fort Road 
Saunderstown, RI		 Statewide
Nuestro Mundo Public Charter School  K-3 + 6-8  K-8 17-21 Gordon Avenue
Providence, RI 		 Providence
Paul Cuffee Charter School K-12 K-12 Upper School (Grades 9-12)
544 Elmwood Avenue
Providence, RI

Middle School (Grades 6-8)
30 Barton Street
Providence, RI

Lower School (Grades K-5)
459 Promenade Street
Providence, RI		 Providence
Providence Preparatory Charter School  5-8  5-8 155 Harrison Street
Providence, RI 		 Providence
RI Nurses Institute Middle College Charter School  9-12 9-12 150 Washington Street
Providence, RI		 Statewide
RISE Prep Mayoral Academy K-8 K-8 30 Cumberland Street
Woonsocket, RI		 Burrillville,
North Smithfield, Woonsocket
Segue Institute for Learning K-12 K-12 325 Cowden Street 
Central Falls, RI		 Central Falls
SouthSide Elementary Charter School K-5 K-5 135 Prairie Avenue
Providence, RI		 Providence
The Compass School K-8 K-8 537 Old North Road
Kingston, RI		 Statewide
The Greene School 9-12 9-12 94 John Potter Road
West Greenwich, RI		 Statewide
The Learning Community K-8 K-8 21 Lincoln Avenue
Central Falls, RI		 Central Falls, Pawtucket, Providence
Times2 Academy K-12 K-12 Middle/High School (Grades 7-12)
50 Fillmore Street
Providence, RI

Elementary School (Grades K-6)
50 Fillmore Street
Providence, RI		 Providence
Trinity Academy for the Performing Arts 7-12 7-12 275 Westminster Street
Providence, RI		 Providence
Village Green Virtual Charter School 9-12 9-12 135 Weybosset Street 
Providence, RI		 Statewide

Proposals for New or Expanding Charter Public Schools

Request for Proposals for New Student Seats

The authorization process for new and expanding charters is in one centralized document, to help provide consistency and clarity for charter applicants.

RIDE will prioritize proposals that focus on increasing the number of high-quality education options for students who would have otherwise attended a school identified as in need of Comprehensive Support and School Improvement and for educationally disadvantaged students: economically-disadvantaged students, differently-abled students, and/or multilingual learners.

The 2024 Request for Proposals for New Student Seats launched on April 22, 2024.

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Additional Measures as related to Charter Management Organizations

Parameters regarding charter management organizations are already in this application, but additionally, Charter Management Organizations applicants will be asked to file a plan with the Office of School Opportunities on how they will avoid conflicts of interest and related party transactions or insufficient segregation of duties between the Charter School and CMO. This request will be made by the Office of School Opportunities to the applicant after the applicant has received an approved completeness check. This answer will be reviewed by RIDE’s legal office before anything proceeds forward with the application.

Under current practice, all application teams need to complete an RFP, with a full public comment period and public hearings and approval by the Council on Elementary and Special Education, in order to open a charter. 

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Technical Assistance

Any party that has specific questions, interest in future proposal opportunities, or questions about the process should email RICharters@ride.ri.gov.   

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Full Timeline: 2024 Request for Proposals for New Student Seats

  • Application Process
    • Application Release Date (April 22, 2024, 10:00 a.m. EST)
    • Technical Assistance Sessions (Early May 2024)
    • Executive Summary Submission Deadline (June 28, 2024, 5:00 p.m. EST)
    • New Seat Application Submission Deadline (July 26, 2024, 5:00 p.m. EST)           
    • Proposals Posted Publicly (by August 7, 2024, 11:00 a.m. EST)

  • Public Comment Process

    RIDE’s Office of School Opportunities will post completed applications here by August 7, 2024. At that time, we invite members of the public to provide written public comments on the completed charter proposals. Comments and statements may be submitted by e-mail to RICharters@ride.ri.gov, by mail to RIDE at 255 Westminster Street, Providence, RI 02903 Attn: Office of School Opportunities or at public hearings, to be scheduled by RIDE pursuant to R.I.G.L § 16-77.2-3; 16-77.3-3 and 16-77.4-3. 

    • Providing Written Public Comment to RIDE (August 7, 2024, 11:00 a.m. EST - November 15, 2024 at 5:00 p.m. EST) 
    • Posting of Local Impact Analyses by RIDE (August 7, 2024, 11:00 a.m. EST - October 11, 2024 at 5:00 p.m. EST)
    • Providing Local Impact Analyses to RIDE (August 7, 2024, 10:00 a.m. EST - October 11, 2024 at 5:00 p.m. EST)
    • Public Comment Hearings (September-October 2024)

New Charter Seats Applications, 2024

RIDE’s Office of School Opportunities posted completed applications in the dropdown below. We invite members of the public to provide written public comments on the completed charter proposals by Friday, November 15, 2024. Comments and statements may be submitted by e-mail to RICharters@ride.ri.gov, by mail to RIDE at 255 Westminster Street, Providence, RI 02903 Attn: Office of School Opportunities or at public hearings listed below by RIDE pursuant to R.I.G.L § 16-77.2-3; 16-77.3-3 and 16-77.4-3. 

Major Amendment Request

The purpose of this major amendment application is to formally request that RISE Prep be allowed to change its governance structure from a Mayoral Academy to that of an Independent Charter School. The critical nature of RISE Prep’s major amendment request is rooted in significant financial challenges unique to operating as a Mayoral Academy. Under current legislation, RISE Prep faces an untenable financial constraint as a Mayoral Academy. In 2017, the legislature passed § 16-7.2-5 (c). This statute amended the funding formula as it relates to charter school funding. Furthermore, with additional holdback, RISE Prep will experience 62% of hold back from Woonsocket local share in the 2024-2025 school year.

RISE PREP [PDF] 

  • Enrolling Communities: Woonsocket, North Smithfield, Burrillville
  • Public Hearing Schedule: information to come

Material Expansions 

A proposal for an expansion for an existing charter that will result in any of the following: a) an increase of enrollment at least 25% of current enrollment or 100 students; b) changes to the charter’s grade levels; c) changes to the charter’s enrollment catchment area; and/or, d) the addition of at least one new school. 

PAUL CUFFEE SCHOOL [PDF] 

  • Enrolling Communities: Providence
  • Local Impact Analysis [PDF]
  • The school requests adding to expand enrollment by 94 students in SY2025-26, increasing by two students in each class across grades K-12: from 20 to 22 per class in grades K-5 for a total of 36 students at the lower school level; from 21 to 24 students in grades 6-8 for a total of 18 students at the middle school level; from 17 to 19 students in each advisory in grades 9-10; and, from 16-19 students in grades 11 and 12, for a total of 40 students at the upper school level. This expansion would increase Paul Cuffee School’s authorized enrollment from 813 to 907. Additionally, the School seeks to expand by an additional 23 students in 2029-30, by adding an additional section of grade 8 students, reaching enrollment of 930 in 2030.
  • Public Hearing Schedule:
    • September 18, 2024 5-7 p.m. Paff Auditorium, URI Shepard Building, 80 Washington Street, Providence, RI 02903. Note: Attendees must enter through the Washington Street entrance.
    • October 2, 2024 5-7 p.m. Paff Auditorium, URI Shepard Building, 80 Washington Street, Providence, RI 02903. Note: Attendees must enter through the Washington Street entrance.

SOUTHSIDE ELEMENTARY CHARTER SCHOOL [PDF] 

  • Enrolling Communities: Providence
  • Local Impact Analysis [PDF]
  • The school requests adding to expand enrollment by 24 students in 2025-26 for 6th grade. Likewise, the school will increase enrollment by an additional 48 students in SY2026-2027 for 7th and 8th grade. This expansion would increase SouthSide’s authorized enrollment from 144 to 216 for grades K-8. 
  • Public Hearing Schedule:
    • September 18, 2024 5-7 p.m. Paff Auditorium, URI Shepard Building, 80 Washington Street, Providence, RI 02903. Note: Attendees must enter through the Washington Street entrance.
    • October 2, 2024 5-7 p.m. Paff Auditorium, URI Shepard Building, 80 Washington Street, Providence, RI 02903. Note: Attendees must enter through the Washington Street entrance.

New Charter Schools 

A proposal that will result in a brand-new charter. 

NEW ENGLAND TECH ACADEMY [PDF] 

  • Enrolling Communities: Statewide
  • Local Impact Analysis [PDF]
  • The vision of New England Tech Academy is to prepare all students for a successful entry into a postsecondary institution and the profession of their choice. They propose opening in SY2025-26 with 144 students in 9th grade and will be at-scale at grades 9-12 in SY2033-2034 with 1,152 students.
  • Public Hearing Schedule:
    • September 18, 2024 5-7 p.m. Paff Auditorium, URI Shepard Building, 80 Washington Street, Providence, RI 02903. Note: Attendees must enter through the Washington Street entrance.
    • October 1, 2024 5-6 p.m. Warwick Public Library, 600 Sandy Lane, Warwick, RI 02889

RHODE ISLAND CULTURAL ACADEMY CHARTER SCHOOL [PDF]

  • Enrolling Communities: Statewide
  • Local Impact Analysis [PDF]
  • The mission of Cultural Academy Charter School is to provide K-12 students with a rigorous, character-based education that ignites a passion for learning and inspires creativity through real-world and project-based experiences. They propose opening in SY2025-26 with 288 students in grades K-3 and will be at-scale at grades K-12 in SY2034-2035 with 936 students. The school will have lottery weights for Central Falls, Pawtucket, Providence, and West Warwick.
  • Public Hearing Schedule:
    • September 18, 2024 5-7 p.m. Paff Auditorium, URI Shepard Building, 80 Washington Street, Providence, RI 02903. Note: Attendees must enter through the Washington Street entrance.
    • September 23, 2024 5-6 p.m. West Warwick Public Library, 1043 Main Street, West Warwick, RI 02893

 

Resources for Families and Community

Visit EnrollRI.org/charter to learn more! 

Enrollment in a charter public school is nonselective and conducted by random lottery. 

Use the Family Information Tool (FIT) to find the school(s) that meets the performance, accessibility, and programmatic targets you are seeking. Next, use the EnrollRI Common Application to apply to any participating charter schools you are interested in and for which your child is eligible to attend.

State of Rhode Island's Charter Public Schools: a report providing data and descriptive information on charter public schools across Rhode Island. - April 2014 [PDF]

Resources for Charter School Administrators

Charter Public School Accountability

In addition to being classified just as any other Rhode Island public school, charter public schools are reviewed and held accountable for meeting student academic and organizational performance goals and face charter revocation or non renewal if they under-perform. If successful, each charter may be granted a term for up to 5 years.

Please review the Charter Performance Review System Handbook for more detail on the charter performance indicators and information about the renewal process.

Charter public schools in Rhode Island are held to common measures of academic, financial and organizational performance. Specifically:

  • Student Academic Performance
  • Financial Performance
  • Organizational Performance
  • Legal, Regulatory and Charter Contract Compliance

The handbook has been updated to reflect the revised Statewide Accountability System in alignment with the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).

Each year beginning with the 2016-17 school year, RIDE compiles an annual Charter School Performance Dashboard, for each charter public school, based on the indicators above. The report template can be found here.

Charter School Financial Reporting

Rhode Island General Law § 16-77-3.1 (f) states: “All charter public schools shall adhere to financial record keeping, reporting, auditing requirements, and procedures as required by the Rhode Island department of education and in accordance with federal and state laws and regulations.”

This quick guide provides an overview of reporting deadlines for financial reports.

District-Charter Collaboration Awards, 2022-2023 

The Office of School Opportunities, at the Rhode Island Department of Education, awarded grants to district-charter partnerships, with the explicit purpose of creating and sustaining collaboration in the two sectors. These projects were: 

Afterschool Programming in Central Falls 

  • Blackstone Valley Prep (BVP), Blackstone Academy, Segue Institute for Learning, The Learning Community, Central Falls Public Schools, and the City of Central Falls all applied to focus on strengthening and sharing afterschool programs across the city of Central Falls through the hiring of a shared afterschool program coordinator. 

Enrollment Landscape Analysis in Providence 

  • Trinity Academy for the Performing Arts (TAPA) and Providence Public Schools (PPSD) applied to lead the next phase of work on Unified Enrollment, including reviving stakeholder engagement and contracting a landscape analysis to inform all charters on what is needed to move toward a robust Unified Enrollment system. 

Multilingual Learner Consortium and Professional Development 

  • Charette Charter, Village Green, Nowell Academy, Rhode Island Nurses Institute Middle College, Providence Preparatory Academy, UCAP, and PPSD applied to hire a shared MLL Specialist to lead shared professional development and consortium work geared towards supporting multilingual learners. 

 

Learn more about RIDE’s District-Charter Collaboration work here:  

"Building a “Transformative” Partnership between Charter and District-Managed Schools in Rhode Island: Design and Implementation of RIDE’s District-Charter Collaboration Grants" (PDF, 3,695K)

 

Urban Core Education Summit

The Rhode Island Department of Education served as host to a meeting series called the "The Urban Core Education Summit," where we laid the foundation for collaboration between school leaders in Providence Public Schools, Central Falls Public Schools, and charter schools in those cities. This initiative launched in Summer 2021 and is ongoing.

The core objectives are relationship building and identifying common areas for further discussion and potential collaboration. The summit was facilitated by Dr. Kenneth Wong, Annenberg Professor and Director of the Urban Education Policy program at Brown University.



For further questions and/or comments, please contact RICharters@ride.ri.gov.

Any other examples of Sharing Practices between Charters and Traditional Schools that you want to share?

Please contact RICharters@ride.ri.gov. We would love to share it!

Charter Support Initiative Projects, 2023-2024 

The Office of School Opportunities, through the Charter Support Initiative, has provided sub-awards to projects that pull multiple schools and districts together and encourages collaboration that benefits all students. These projects are: 

Root Literacy Design Partnership 

Awarded to the following Schools: 

  • The Compass School 

  • The Kingston Hill Academy 

Learn more about The Rhode Island Science of Reading Conference, hosted by The Compass School. You may also visit the Root Literacy Design page to learn more about future trainings and opportunities.

 

High-Quality Dual Language and Bilingual Curriculum Development and Implementation 

Awarded to the following schools: 

  • The International Charter School 

  • Nuestro Mundo Public Charter School 

 

Data Wise Improvement Process Professional Learning Community 

Awarded to the following schools: 

  • The Paul Cuffee School 

  • Blackstone Valley Prep 

  • The Greene School 

  • RISE Prep Mayoral Academy 

  • Southside Elementary Charter School 

 

Square Mile PM Academy: After School Program Extension 

Awarded to the following schools: 

  • The Segue Institute for Learning, in partnership with other middle schools, both charter and traditional, in the city of Central Falls. 

 

Data Coaching and Planning Initiative  

Awarded to the following schools: 

  • Blackstone Academy Charter School 

  • Charette High School 

 

There are currently no items associated with the Office of School Opportunities open for public feedback.

If any major amendments to any charters are proposed in the future, information can be found here.

Related Resources