State audit found unequal enrolment in trade programmes; policy rewritten

What happened

The superintendent told the School Committee that a Rhode Island Department of Education audit of the district had found disparities in enrolment trends across its career and technical education programmes, and that the district's anti-discrimination and anti-harassment policy needed rewriting because its grievance procedure was unclear. The committee approved a first reading of the revised Policy P6631, which its legal team had approved and which replaces the existing policy.

Why it matters to families

Career and technical education is one of Burrillville's strongest offerings, so who is and is not enrolling in it matters. An unclear grievance procedure also affects any family trying to raise a complaint.

The evidence

The January 13, 2026 approved minutes record the superintendent stating that an audit from the Department of Education last year found some disparities in enrolment trends in the district's career and technical education programmes, that the anti-discrimination and anti-harassment grievance procedure was unclear, and the unanimous 5-0 vote approving the first reading of the revised Policy P6631. The audit report itself is not in the collected record.

The source