Warwick Public Schools (WPS) expresses in its mission statement its desire to create individualized learning experiences for its diverse students while preparing them for the higher-tech workplace of today. The school district has cultivated relationships with institutions of higher learning in an effort to facilitate the transition from high school to college, and the district has additionally created the Warwick Area Career and Technical Center as a resource for both preparing students in grades 10 through 12 for college coursework as well as providing students with skills that will serve them well immediately in employment. In total, WPS graduated 93 percent of its students in 2003.
Warwick Public Schools also administers an Adult Learning Center that is housed at the Warwick Area Career and Technical Center facility. The center offers GED preparation, English as a Second Language instruction, and vocational training for adult learners.
The following is a summary of data regarding the Warwick public schools as of the 2004–2005 school year.
Total enrollment: 11,993
Number of facilities
elementary schools: 20
junior high schools: 3
high schools: 3
other: 2
Student teacher ratio: 13:1
Teacher salaries
minimum: $31,025
maximum: $55,973
Funding per pupil: $11,132
Five private Catholic schools and three independent private schools operate in the Warwick area, along with one school for students of all ages with special needs. The J. Arthur Trudeau Center provides respite care, case management, an applied behavior analysis program for children with autism, vocational skills training, community support service, and home-based therapy for clients.
Public Schools Information: Warwick Public Schools, 34 Warwick Lake Avenue, Warwick, RI 02889; telephone (401)734-3000
The main campus of the Community College of Rhode Island (CCRI) is located in Warwick, operating as a public two-year institution of higher education that offers associate's degrees and certifications in nursing, legal studies, computer science, chemistry, dental health, foreign languages and cultures, mathematics, and more. Most credits can be transferred to a four-year university if desired. CCRI enrolls approximately 16,000 students per year and has a faculty of 300. The New England Institute of Technology (NEIT) in Warwick was founded in 1940; during the past 60-some years, technology has progressed at astonishing speed, and NEIT is designed to assist students in keeping up the pace. The private, nonprofit institution offers bachelor's of science and associate's degrees in 29 programs including mechanical engineering, architectural building engineering, programming technology, interior design, digital recording arts, software engineering, video and radio production, and business management technology. NEIT strongly emphasizes practical application of theoretical concepts as its primary teaching strategy.
Nearby Providence, Rhode Island, is home to a number of vocational schools, community colleges, and universities, including Johnson & Wales, a private nonprofit institution with a student body of 16,084 and 58 undergraduate degree programs. Associate's and bachelor's degrees can be obtained in business, technology, education, and hospitality. The culinary arts program at J & W is renowned for turning out chefs such as Emeril Lagasse of Food Network fame. The university also offers graduate programs such as a Masters in the Art of Teaching, a Doctorate in Education, and a Masters in Business Administration. Brown University in Providence enrolls 7,595 students in undergraduate and graduate degree programs as well as its medical school. The Rhode Island School of Design, a private art and design institution, offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in 18 disciplines such as apparel design, ceramics, photography, sculpture, and furniture design. Providence is also home to several schools focusing on the medical professions of radiology, sonography, nuclear medicine, and nursing.
The Warwick Public Library contains approximately 200,000 texts, more than 8,000 audio-visual materials, and more than 500 periodic subscriptions. The central library branch is located on Sandy Lane, and three branch libraries are situated in Warwick villages such as Apponaug. The library coordinates story hours and children's activities throughout the year. Located in another of Warwick's many villages, the Pontiac Free Library offers 20,000 books, 500 audio-visual materials and 50 subscriptions to its public. The Free Library has been serving Pontiac and surrounding villages since 1884; programming now includes storytelling for children, summer reading challenges, and a book discussion group. The modern library offers patrons internet access.
The Warwick campus of the Community College of Rhode Island has access to more than 100,000 volumes and 600 periodicals through the interlibrary loan system, which allows students at one campus to borrow materials from other campuses. Specialized collections include Academy Award-winning movies from 1990 to the present.
Brown University in Providence coordinates a library system containing more than six million items. Humanities and social sciences resources are located in the university's John D. Rockefeller Jr. Library, while medical students conduct their literature reviews in the Sciences Library. Special collections, such as rare books and Americana, are housed in the John Hay and John Carter Brown Libraries. The university received $110 million in research dollars during fiscal year 2003, funding projects through NASA, the National Science Foundation and the Departments of Defense and Energy, to name a few. Increased lab space, completed in 2004, has enhanced the university's ability to participate in research in the areas of marine biology, life science, and computational molecular biology. Other specialized libraries are within easy reach of Warwick, with the Health Library at Kent County Hospital, the U.S. Naval War College Library in Newport, and the Rhode Island State Law Library in Providence.
Public Library Information: Warwick Public Library, 600 Sandy Lane, Warwick, RI 02889; telephone (401)739-5440