Residents invited to learn more about East Providence High School building project at community forum and film screening

September 18 event will feature presentation about Question 4, followed by
screening of the documentary film “Most Likely to Succeed”

East Providence, RI – East Providence Public Schools will host a community forum on Tuesday, September 18, to provide an overview of the proposal to construct a new East Providence High School, followed by a screening of the documentary film, Most Likely to Succeed.

The forum will be held at 6:00 pm in the East Providence High School Auditorium, 2000 Pawtucket Ave., and will feature a presentation about the proposed construction project and a question-and-answer session. Residents will vote on Election Day – Tuesday, November 6th – on ballot Question 4, a referendum to approve $189.5 million in bonds to finance the project.

The Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) already has approved significant State funding to support construction of the new high school, if Question 4 passes. At the forum, district officials will present to the public additional details about the financing of the project, including:
• Under the existing State formula, East Providence would receive reimbursement on 54.4 percent of eligible costs.
• That figure could increase to 74.4 percent if voters statewide approve Question 1 on the ballot.
• Based on estimates from the City of East Providence Finance and Assessment Office, the resulting impact on the residential tax rate will range from $0.76 to $1.17 per $1,000 assessed.
• The average assessment for a single-family home in East Providence is $170,578. At that assessment, the corresponding tax impact is approximately $130 to $200 per year, or $11 to $17 per month.

For more information, visit the project website, www.epbuildingcommittee.com, and follow the project on Facebook and Twitter.

Beginning at 6:45 pm, residents are invited to a screening of the documentary feature film Most Likely to Succeed, which examines the history of education in the United States and challenges communities to adopt innovative new approaches to teaching and learning. The film explores questions of how to modernize an educational system that was developed more than a century ago during the rise of the Industrial Age. The documentary profiles a school in San Diego that is completely rethinking what the experience of going to school looks like and follows students, parents and teachers through a truly unorthodox school experience, asking audiences to consider what sort of educational environment is most likely to succeed in the 21st century.

The district is presenting the film to the community as part of an educational visioning process, which includes input from parents, students, educators, community members and other stakeholders. For more information about the film, visit https://teddintersmith.com/mltsfilm/.