Rhode Island's Charter Public Schools

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.

The complete list of charter schools, grades served, their locations and enrolling communities are also listed below. This printable List of Charter Schools in Rhode Island provides information in a single page for all charter public schools, links to each web-page, grade levels served, communities served and charter type

Name	Grades (Fall 2020)	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 Iluminar Mayoral Academy Elementary	K-4	K-4	85 Garfield Avenue Cranston, RI	Cranston, North Providence, Providence, Warwick
Achievement First Iluminar Mayoral Academy Middle	5-6	5-8	85 Garfield Avenue Cranston, RI	Cranston,  North Providence, Providence, Warwick
Achievement First Promesa Mayoral Academy Elementary	K-1	K-5	370 Hartford Avenue  Providence, RI	Cranston,  North Providence, Providence, Warwick
Beacon Charter School	9-12	9-12	320 Main Street Woonsocket, RI	Statewide
Beacon Founder's 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
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-6	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
NEL/CPS Construction & Career Academy	9-12	9-12	4 Sharpe Drive Cranston, RI	Statewide
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
RI Nurses Institute Middle College Charter School	9-12	9-12	150 Washington Street Providence, RI	Statewide
RISE Prep Mayoral Academy	K-5	K-8	30 Cumberland Street Woonsocket, RI	Burrillville, North Smithfield, Woonsocket
Segue Institute for Learning	3-8	3-8	325 Cowden Street  Central Falls, RI	Central Falls
Sheila C. "Skip" Nowell Leadership Academy	9-12	9-12	150 Washington St. Providence, RI	Statewide
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	150 Washington Street Providence, RI	Providence
Village Green Virtual Charter School	9-12	9-12	135 Weybosset Street  Providence, RI	Statewide

 

Resources for Families and Community

2021-22 RI Charter Public School Application Is Open! Visit EnrollRI.org/charter to learn more! 

Enrollment in a charter public school is nonselective and conducted by random lottery. Participating schools will share the EnrollRI Common Application for the 2021-2022 school application process. Please visit EnrollRI.org/charter to learn more, explore your options and apply!  

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. Participating charter schools will hold their 2021-2022 admissions lotteries on April 1 and will communicate your student’s enrollment status soon after that time. If a charter public school you are interested in is not currently participating in the EnrollRI Common Application, reach out to the school directly to apply. 

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]

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): This document addresses many common questions about charter public schools in Rhode Island. [PDF]

Resources for Charter School Administrators

• Governance Handbook: Update COMING SOON
• Lottery and Enrollment Guidance

 

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.

Starting or Expanding a Charter Public School

Requests for Proposals for New Student Seats

The resources on this page are for all charter proposals to open new student seats (new charter schools and expansions) in the fall 2021. RIDE invites members of the public to submit applications in response to the Request for Proposals for New Charter Seats to open in academic year 2021-22.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 updated deadline for submission for proposals in 2020 was 12PM EST on September 28, 2020. All complete proposals under review, as of September 29, 2020, are available on this website in charter school proposals under review. Please reference the updated timetable of anticipated dates for more information. 

• 2020 Request for Proposals for New Student Seats
• Budget Template for Independent or District Charter Applicants
• Budget Template for Mayoral Academy Charter Applicants
• The Charter School Readiness Handbook is available upon request

Technical Assistance

RIDE will provide technical assistance throughout the spring of 2020 for applicant teams submitting proposals in 2020. RIDE hosted several sessions to provide an overview of the process, resources and Q&A.  Any party that has specific questions, interest in future proposal opportunities, or questions about the process should email RICharters@ride.ri.gov.   

Charter School Program Grant Startup Information

• The CSP application is available for new seat applicants who indicate an intent to apply for CSP through the new seat RFP process. Please email wendy.wallace@ride.ri.gov with questions regarding the Charter School Program Grant. For a copy of the application, please click here. 

2020 Requests for Proposals for New Charter Seats and Public Comment

The Charter School Office will invite members of the public to provide public comment on completed charter proposals starting on September 29, 2020 and lasting through December 1, 2020.  Complete proposals can be viewed below.   

 

RIDE has received a major amendment request to their original charter from the Sheila C. "Skip" Nowell Leadership Academy to consolidate the approved enrollment of 320 students across four (4) small campuses – one each in Providence, Central Falls, Warwick, and East Providence- to one single campus at 150 Washington Street in Providence. If you have feedback on the local impact analysis which details the potential fiscal impact of the proposed major amendment please reach out to RICharters@RIDE.RI.GOV.