HISTORY
MPA History
Mount Pleasant Academy is a program of Family Service of RI (FSRI). Family Service of Rhode Island, Inc., is a non-profit organization that provides a wide array of social, medical and educational services to primarily low-income children, adults and families in every Rhode Island community, and in Massachusetts and Connecticut communities along the Rhode Island border. It was founded in 1892, which makes it one of the oldest non-profit agencies in Rhode Island.
In January 2000, FSRI hired Jeffrey Brusini to create a day treatment facility for children with emotional and behavioral challenges. The facility was to be based in Providence. In the ten years prior, Dr. Brusini had been the director of a small private school for children with similar needs in Warwick, RI.
Dr. Brusini began a property search within the City, and at the same time began developing the structure and plan for a cutting-edge program designed to support children with behavioral, emotional and learning challenges, as well as their families.
In the spring of 2000, we located a piece of property in the Mount Pleasant section of the City. The building, originally built in 1858, had been one of the City’s elementary schools for over a century. Mount Pleasant Elementary School (also known as “Little Mount Pleasant”) served primarily kindergarten and first-graders. The City eventually closed Little Mount Pleasant and sold the building in the late 1970’s to private developers, who renovated the building several times.
FSRI purchased the building in the fall of 2000, and began working with French Design & Build to return the building to use as a school. In the mean time, Dr. Brusini hired Joan Colwell, recently retired director of special education for the Town of East Greenwich, to serve as the new school’s director of education.
Mount Pleasant Academy opened for business on September 20, 2001. That was the first day a student was actually taught “in the building.” (Senior staff may remember that we had actually accepted students a few days prior to the building being ready, so we ended up having class at their homes, on the playground, and now and then in a vehicle!). We originally opened for students in grades 2-5, and each subsequent year added a grade. The “official” grand opening was held a little later, in November 2001.
In 2008, we renovated our ground floor to provide additional learning space for MPA students. Also in 2008, we partnered with the City of Providence and obtained grant funding to renovate and update the George West playground, which is adjacent to MPA.
In spring 2020, MPA, like all schools in Rhode island, was forced to close due to the COVID-19 pandemic. With just a few days’ notice, we created a “virtual MPA” using the Google Classroom platform. All students who needed a laptop computer were provided with one, and the school year concluded via Distance Learning through June 2020. As the pandemic infection rate eased towards the end of June, MPA, after adopting all appropriate safety protocols, became the first school in RI to re-open as we began our 2020 Extended School year (ESY) program.
The higher you fly, the longer the fall! Just as MPA was hitting its stride serving as a model for the state in the provision of hybrid learning (throughout July 2020, we provided both in-person and distance learning simultaneously), disaster struck. During the weekend of August 1, a pipe burst on the third floor, and water flowed through the building, unabated for over 36 hours, until discovered Sunday morning. By then, almost 70% of the building had been devastated. Immediately, MPA went back to full Distance Learning, and the clean-up began. Drying-out and removing all the water-damaged ceilings, walls, floors, and equipment took almost 4 weeks, and rebuilding began in September 2020—the start of MPA’s 20th school year! Rebuilding and renovation progressed throughout the remainder of 2020 with students receiving all services via Distance Learning. Students began returning to the building in small groups—as construction on each floor was complete, classrooms would return, starting in January 2021. Students (and staff) were amazed to see the renovated interior, new equipment, and the bright colors of them re-opened MPA.
Architectural plans for a renovation in the 1970’s
MPA’s 3rd floor—before being transformed
1st floor Reception and Play Area during construction
Early stages of Classroom 1B