RI’s #10 School: Classical High School
Monday, May 09, 2011
For thousands of Rhode Islanders of all ages, Classical High remains an iconic example of what public education in a city can, should, be.
As Classical slides from 6th place in the 2010 rankings to 10th place, it does create a moment of pause, and reflection, to see what may or may not have contributed to its decline.
Status quo
Fundamentally, Classical has maintained its hallmarks of excellence, as this year's numbers indicate. With a table-pounding 98% of students scoring above proficiency in Reading NECAPs, it holds the highest score in RI. Its 74% above proficient in Writing is among the highest in the state, second only to East Greenwich High. However, its 49% above proficient in Math reflects a drop from previous years. In graduation rates, Classical boasts a laudatory 97.1%, the highest in the state, but is hurt by its large class sizes, with an average of 15 students per teacher, the second-highest rate in the state (bested only by Times 2 Academy).
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTWhy the drop?
Normally, a maintenance of high standards such as these would keep Classical in or near its 6th place finish of last year, but the aggressive improvements on NECAP scores among several high schools gave them enough momentum to push past RI's great urban public high school. Founded in 1843 with the motto, Certare, Petere, Reperire, Neque Cedere, a translation of the famous phrase taken from Tennyson's Ulysses, "To Strive, to Seek, to Find, and Not to Yield," Classical might want to put more muscle into its Latin motto, and regain the platform it has held for so long.
Classical High School at a Glance
Enrollment: 1,047
Mascot: The Purple
Famous Alums:
- John Orlando Pastore — Former Governor of Rhode Island, United States Senator
- S. J. Perelman — American Humorist
- Bruce Sundlun — Former Governor of Rhode Island
- Rudolph Fisher — pioneering Black radiologist and writer of the Harlem Renaissance
- Irving R. Levine — Former NBC News Economics Correspondent
- Frank Licht — Former Governor of Rhode Island
- George Macready — American actor
- A.O. Scott — Chief New York Times Movie Critic
- Stanley Fish — Literary theorist and legal scholar
- Michael Kang — Filmmaker
- C. M. Eddy, Jr. — Renowned Author
- Lauren Corrao - President of original programming and development for Comedy Central. Former Fox executive, helped develop That '70s Show and Mad TV
- William A. Barnett — Economist
- Robin Green - Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning television producer for The Sopranos and Northern Exposure, among others
- S. Hastings Richardson- Author
- Alexander Knight- Poet
- Angel Taveras - First Latino Mayor of Providence
For a downloadable, printable version of RI's Top High Schools 2011, with the full chart of rankings and summaries of key articles, click here.
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