The city of Pawtucket and the Pawtucket School Committee have been dedicated to upgrading our city’s public school facilities for more than a decade because our students and teachers deserve safe and modern learning environments. Since 2012, Pawtucket residents have overwhelmingly supported this effort by approving more than $600 million in bonds to rebuild or renovate school facilities, including Winters, Baldwin, Greene, and Potter-Burns Elementary Schools, as well as the new Pawtucket High School currently under construction.
This deep investment means the city has now reached its bonding capacity, and that is holding back our ability to move forward with major renovations at Slater Middle School, a building that is now more than 100 years old. Slater is in dire need of work, with building conditions that are negatively impacting the health, safety, and welfare of our students. For decades, maintenance was deferred, resulting in failing mechanical systems and structural issues that interfere with the school’s effective operation. While we are working diligently to make the building habitable in the short term, these efforts are not a substitute for the modern, 21st-century learning environment that our students deserve.
Pawtucket is a high-poverty district serving a growing population of multilingual learners who require special services. Slater currently lacks the modern learning spaces to help these students thrive. The building is also not ADA-accessible.
Put simply, we must do better for our students.
Given current fiscal realities, the city does not have the ability to borrow for Slater renovations in the near term without jeopardizing its financial stability. That is why we are urging the General Assembly to pass H-8204 / S-2679. This legislation offers a creative and proven financing solution that allows the state to pre-fund the majority of the project. Under this agreement, the state would contribute its 85 percent share of the costs upfront. Pawtucket would then go to our voters to approve the remaining 15 percent – estimated at no more than $22.5 million in city bonds.
This model is not unprecedented. The state provided similar assistance to Central Falls to allow that district to move forward with their beautiful new high school, which opened this March. We are asking the state to partner with us, recognizing that Pawtucket’s students shouldn’t have to wait for a safe and modern Slater because of bonding constraints.
Passing this legislation is about more than just bricks and mortar; it’s about equity and the fundamental right of every child to learn in a healthy, supportive environment. We have a clear path forward to resolve the long-standing challenges at Slater Middle School. Now, we need the General Assembly to take action so we can finally deliver the school our community needs.
Donald Grebien is mayor of Pawtucket, Joanne Bonollo is chairperson of the Pawtucket School Committee, Randy Buck is superintendent of the Pawtucket School District, and Terrence Mercer is Pawtucket City Council president.
