Setting the Record Straight
Chariho United
Claim: Administrative neglect caused a $40 million increase in elementary school repair costs
Lowe and Phelps compared elementary school facility needs identified in a 2017 report to a 2025 report and landed on roughly a $40 million increase, framing it as proof of neglect by district administration.
Two things are at play. First, these facility assessments were not conducted or commissioned by Chariho administration. Both the 2017 Jacobs report and the 2025 Bureau Veritas reports were commissioned by the Rhode Island Department of Education. Second, and more importantly, Bureau Veritas explicitly warns against comparing the two reports' dollar figures directly, because nine years of construction cost inflation makes a straight comparison misleading. Its own methodology applies a 144.3% inflation multiplier, based on the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' Producer Price Index, specifically so the 2017 numbers can be fairly compared to 2025 dollars.
When you run that same math across all four Chariho elementary schools, the real increase is about $29.9 million, not $40 million. Lowe and Phelps's number appears to come from skipping the inflation adjustment the state's own consultant says is necessary.
It's also worth looking at what that money is actually for. Across all four elementary schools, only about 4.9% of the total identified need is classified as "Performance/Integrity," meaning a system that has failed or is unreliable. Zero dollars are classified as safety issues. The remaining 87 to 96% of costs at each individual school fall under "Aged But Functional" or "Lifecycle/Renewal," meaning normal, expected aging of buildings that are 60 to 90 years old, not evidence of neglect. At Richmond Elementary, the report also notes that Chariho facilities staff had already identified and priced a fix for the one item flagged as a failed condition, a leaking facade and gutter system, before the assessment was even completed.
These are public documents. Read
the full assessments for yourself rather than taking anyone's summary,
including ours
Claim: Chariho is "failing to educate more than 50 percent" of students
This claim is tied to RICAS state testing results and rising per-pupil spending. Two corrections here. RIDE does not use the word "fail" in its reporting. Student performance is reported as "met expectations" or "did not meet expectations," which is not the same claim, and RIDE does not characterize a district as failing based on these results.
By the numbers Lowe's own handout includes, Chariho outperformed the Rhode Island state average in both ELA and Math, in both the 2023-24 and 2024-25 school years.
On spending, Chariho's districtwide enrollment fell from 3,008 to 2,857 students over the period in question. When enrollment drops and fixed costs (staffing, buildings, utilities) stay largely the same, per-pupil spending rises on its own. That's simple math, not a verdict on educational quality.
A note on a third document
A separate document circulated alongside these handouts makes serious allegations involving district personnel and grade manipulation. Chariho United has not independently verified these claims and will not speculate on unverified allegations of this nature. If and when there is a documented, public record on this matter, we will report on it.
Chariho United is a non-partisan community group formed to
support inclusive, fully funded public schools in Charlestown, Richmond, and
Hopkinton.
We believe strong schools are the foundation of a strong
community, and that every student deserves the resources, opportunities, and
support they need to thrive
