Gladstone Street Elementary School is located in Cranston, Rhode Island in a neighborhood which was once home to the hundreds of families who worked long hours in the nearby factories, printing plants and the former Narragansett Brewery.  This community, like so many others in New England, grew quickly through the Industrial Revolution and was at that time populated by a great many recent immigrants of primarily Irish and Italian decent and the young families of those recently returned from the war.

Gladstone opened its doors in 1953 and was, at that time, considered a state-of-the-art facility with 24 large classrooms, its own full-size gymnasium and auditorium spaces and even an Olympic-sized indoor swimming pool.
Gladstone has since become one of the older facilities in the district. The pool closed years ago. The brewery and many of the factories are now a distant memory. The last names (and the faces) of our students have changed dramatically. While we still welcome a number of recent immigrant families (seemingly every day), they now more often come to us from the Dominican Republic, South America and Asia. The McCaugheys and the Santurris are now more likely to be the Ramirezs and the Phratheps. For these families and for those who were born and raised in the Gladstone community, stayed here and now send their children to the same school that they attended as children, Gladstone Street School is a place where the promise of a rigorous and equitable education can be realized. The changes described and possible challenges that they present for our staff are the reality in so many urban ring schools throughout the country. Our ability to meet them and to provide the academic, social and emotional supports needed to prepare our students for future successes are a source of great pride for the Gladstone Staff.

Currently, Gladstone serves 525 students in grades kindergarten through six with four classrooms at each grade level in grades 1-5, one sixth grade ELL class and four sections of Kindergarten. Just under 70% our students qualify for free or reduced lunch and 45% of our students receive ELL services which range from full-time self-contained placement to resource support in furtherance of interpersonal and academic language acquisition. Our work to develop and strengthen a Response to Intervention model of support for struggling students has led to a significant reduction in the number of special education referrals and currently 12% of our students are designated as special education. The vast majority of our special education supports are now provided in an inclusive model in which these students are full contributing members of their classes and benefit, as do their classmates, from the instruction of highly qualified specialists.
In 2005, Gladstone was designated a school “In Need of Improvement” and as “Making Insufficient Progress” by the Rhode Department of Education. New England Common Assessment Program (NECAP) data showed significant gaps in achievement for both English Language Learners and special education students in Literacy and Math.
Since that time, through the concerted efforts of our instructional staff and with the support of our local and state Title 1 Directors, Gladstone has made exceptional gains in the levels of student achievement as required by NCLB.
A commitment to high academic and behavioral expectations for all students was reestablished and a greater emphasis on careful data analysis for the purposes of strategic planning and student-level interventions became the norm. Title 1 staff which included Literacy and Math specialists work with the administration to identify needs, plan improvement initiatives, deliver supports to targeted students and classes and provide job-embedded professional development to their colleagues. Classroom teachers work with each other to solidify the implementation of Grade Level Expectations and have collaboratively designed and launched common assessment instruments and instructional calendars that allow them both flexibility and clear frames of reference. Weekly grade level meetings provide teachers the opportunity to share, learn and support each other’s efforts.

As a result of the efforts of the Gladstone staff, we have witnessed steady and significant improvement in student achievement as measured for NECAP and other local assessments. We have also seen major successes in terms of closing equity gaps for our underrepresented students particularly our ELL and special education students.
The Rhode Island Department of Education 2008 School Report Card for Gladstone Street School indicates that Gladstone is now meeting AYP for all 28 of its targets and that all subgroups are making substantial progress. Prior to being honored by being name a NASTID Distinguished School this fall Gladstone Street School was also recognized by The Rhode Island Department of Education as a 2008 Regents’ Commended School.
While the Gladstone staff is excited by, and takes great pride in, these successes and is confident about its’ ability to continually rise to the challenges of providing outstanding learning opportunities to all students, they are not at all interested resting on their laurels. The work of focused, deliberate school improvement is ongoing. Our work in strengthening our understanding of scientifically based best practice continues. Our dedication to working collaboratively to bring all students to ever-higher levels of achievement is unwavering. Our commitment to instilling in all students the personal qualities of honesty, reliability and kindness while in pursuit of academic excellence and intellectual vigor remains central to our purpose.

Gladstone Street School is honored to be a NASTID Distinguished School.

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