March 28, 2024

PCD to Expand to a PK-12 Independent School. Merges with Henry Barnard.

RIC announced the closing of Henry Barnard last summer

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According to statements on the Providence Country Day School web site, the school is merging with Henry Barnard in Providence. The school, founded in 1923 will soon become a PK-12 school. Providence Country Day (PCD) on Waterman Avenue in East Providence is a college preparatory school currently serving grades six through 12, with a recent addition of grade five. The school stresses small class sizes, close student-teacher ratios, and personalized experience along with a required “participation in organized sports or physical education.” According to the school’s web site, students at PCD come from over 45 communities in Rhode Island and nearby Massachusetts and Connecticut. The independent school’s first Head of School, Charles Breed, coined the school phrase, "no one is a sideliner here." The school says that “the choices each season are broad, enabling students to pursue their current interests, develop new interests, and compete at their highest level of ability.”

Operating as a middle and high school for 98 years, PCD will now provide a Pre-K -12 education with the just announced merger with the Henry Barnard School (HBS) in Providence. The 123-year-old HBS was founded as an elementary educational training school on the campus of Rhode Island College. The school is known for innovative teaching models and was named for Rhode Island’s first superintendent of schools, Henry Barnard. According to a PCD/HBS statement, HBS has been “a champion of accessible, high quality education. The student-centered curriculum is guided by experiential learning and the tenets of respect, responsibility and community.” Last summer RIC announced that the HBS on its campus would be closed due to budget concerns. As HBS parents and alumni looked for alternatives to their school closing, they wanted to create their own school, separate from RIC.

“A legendary partnership built on two historic foundations”
The timing of RIC's announcement last summer to close HBS was surprising to many, including the leadership at PCD. “The subsequent stories about the parents and alumni working to save the school were also inspiring and created an interesting opportunity at an opportune moment for PCD. ‘The PCD Quest’ had been unveiled to national acclaim in October 2020, detailing a bold initiative designed to build upon the philosophy that quality education should be accessible, personal, and relevant,” said a PCD statement. As PCD looked to their future, they decided to lower tuition and to approach HBS about a merger.

"I am excited to announce our partnership with Providence Country Day School," stated Scott Bromberg, president of the HBS Parents Association. "I am especially thankful to the HBS community, particularly the dedicated staff, many alumni and devoted parents who volunteered countless hours toward finding a path forward for our beloved school. I would also like to thank Rhode Island College President, Frank Sánchez, and his staff for enabling the parents to pursue a path forward for HBS. We are proud to partner with PCD to continue in this shared vision of educating young learners for years to come. Thank you to Head of School, Kevin Folan, and the PCD Board for their vision and recognition of the valuable impact Henry Barnard School has made on young learners for decades," said a statement on the PCD web site.

"Opportunities like this do not present themselves often,” said PCD Head of School Kevin Folan. “This is a chance for two institutions with strong, century-old legacies of educating young people to come together to enhance and expand the incredible education each provides. I thank Scott Bromberg and the many HBS volunteers for their commitment to keeping this school moving forward despite the many challenges and for taking action on this opportunity. This is a once-in-a-century partnership and we are delighted to see what the future holds for our school," added Folan. The school statement went on to say that “this approach to education combined with a commitment to small class sizes and building diversity at all levels made the two schools a natural fit. The 2021-2022 school year will begin the journey as united schools offering a continuous PK-12 educational experience.”

Officials from both schools are enthusiastic about the coming expansion. "It's a natural fit for both schools," says Mark McLaughlin, Associate Head of School and Director of Strategic Partnerships at PCD. "We have seen many graduates from Henry Barnard School matriculate to PCD over the years and find great success. It has always been a natural transition between our two campuses. This will just bring us together as part of the same school and provide additional continuity for families first starting school through high school graduation."

The HBS will temporarily remain at its RIC campus as plans are being developed to move to the PCD property within 3 to 5 years. PCD has a 30 acre campus in East Providence abutting the East Providence High School and the East Providence Police Department. The PCD site features newly renovated athletic facilities, dining facilities, a new turf soccer field (partnership with local soccer group) and the busy baseball field on the corner of Pawtucket and Waterman avenues. Each school will retain its original names.

The PCD campus straddled both sides of Pawtucket Avenue until 1996 when the 400,000-pound Chace Hall was moved to the east side of Pawtucket Avenue. The Chace Hall goes back to the 1920’s. A deal saw a transaction between PCD and the City of East Providence in which the City purchased what is now the Robert Rock Senior Center. Shortly thereafter, PCD moved its entire campus to the current Waterman Avenue location. There is room to expand and locate the HBS PK - 5 program.

The merger statement said that Folan “will be the Head of School for all grade levels, PreK-12, starting this summer. HBS is in the process of identifying a new leader for the elementary school, who will work in conjunction with PCD's head of middle school and head of upper school to create continuity for students and families. The new position will report directly to Folan,” officials said.

Further, the statement added that “applications are currently being accepted for enrollment for the 2021-2022 academic year preschool and elementary school students at Henry Barnard's existing location on the RIC campus, and for middle school and high school students at PCD's campus in East Providence, RI. Families interested in learning more may visit www.providencecountryday.org/henrybarnard for more information on the partnership and how to apply for PreK-12. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis as space allows, and all offers of admission from HBS will be honored through this partnership.

PCD HEADS OF SCHOOL:
Charles Henry Breed (1923-1927)
Albert C. Tyler (1927-1934)
Edward G. Lund (1934-1965)
Evan R. West (1965-1985)
Porter D. Caesar II (1985-1990)
Christopher Corkery (1991-1998)
Susan Haberlandt (1998-2011)
Vince Watchorn (2011-2019)
Kevin Folan (2019-)

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