Recent resignations from the Chariho Regional School board may be jeopardizing a potential vote this fall for a bond issue that would lead to the replacement of three aging elementary schools.
A critical vote is scheduled for Tuesday (April 14) at which the school committee is being asked to approve language for the bond referendum, which then needs General Assembly approval. Recently, the School Committee chairperson and another member resigned.
Those schools, approaching a century old, have been plagued by flooding issues, mold, electrical problems, and overcrowding. And, according to Gina Picard, Chariho School Superintendent, are costing the district $3 million a year just to maintain, a cost that will certainly increase with inflation.
“We just keep patching them,” Picard said.
A bond issue that would have replaced the schools failed a few years ago, and with that rejection also went millions of dollars in special state incentives that have now sunset.
The school district is trying again, with a proposal for a unified school to replace the three elementary schools. Efforts are underway to convince voters in Charlestown, Richmond, and Hopkinton to approve a $110 million bond in November. Picard believes 61 percent of that cost will be reimbursed in grants from the Rhode Island Department of Education, leaving a cost to the towns of $45 million.
There are those on the school committee and the town councils in Charlestown, Hopkinton, and Richmond, who have voiced opposition, and prefer the district continue to use a band aid approach to keep the existing schools open.
Two school committee members of the committee’s 10 members resigned in recent weeks, including its chairperson, Louise Dinsmore.
Dinsmore officially said she was resigning because of growing professional and family commitments, but added what she described as hostilities.
“Escalating vitriol, hate-filled personal attacks, and hostile behavior directed at me by members and supporters of the Chariho United political action committee ,,, the intensity of this hostility has left me increasingly concerned for my personal safety,” she said in a statement published in the Westerly Sun. “Given the troubling rise of political violence across our country, I must place my well-being and that of my family first.”
For its part, Chariho United on its Facebook page, while characterizing some public meetings as “tense,” said “we disagree with that characterization, and we believe her claims are baseless. Criticism directed at those who speak up for public education is a familiar tactic, and we won’t be silenced by it.”
The Chariho United Facebook page said the “tension has largely been a direct result of efforts to cut the school budget, eliminate programs, and undermine confidence in district leadership. Chariho United exists because community members wanted a voice in that fight. Showing up, asking questions, and advocating for students is not harassment.”
Dinsmore resigned just days before a district-wide vote on the school budget, which passed on April 7, and precedes a School Committee meeting Tuesday night (April 14) that is expected to consider some weighty issues, including wording on the prospective bond issue (which then goes to the General Assembly approving the referendum), a vote to extend Picard’s contract, among the issues.
Last year, the school committee denied extending Picard’s contract to 2027, claiming then that she should be able to prove herself in that time. Picard was hired in 2020. In 2025-26 Chariho High School was rated 10th best of 62 high schools in the state by U.S. News and World Report.
According to the 2017 Jacobs Report, an assessment of the safety end educational readiness of every school in Rhode Island, compiled for the Rhode Island Department of Education, the three Chariho elementary schools are aging and substandard.
Richmond Elementary, which often has flooding issues, was built in 1935; Charlestown, which needs considerable excavation, was built in 1954; and Ashaway, where trailers are used for some classes, was built in 1968.
“Little ones are bringing home chrome books because we don’t have enough outlets,” Picard said. “Sometimes we can’t operate two things at once.”
A message from the Chariho Elementary School Facilities Planning last September said, “this is about investing in our children and ensuring that the Chariho communities of Charlestown, Richmond, and Hopkinton provide safe, modern, and inspiring schools for generations to come.”
