Original Research by School Decision on Austin T. Levy School
Austin T. Levy School is an early-childhood public school serving pre-kindergarten through first grade in the village of Harrisville, within the Burrillville School District. Because it covers only the youngest grades, there is no state assessment data to report. Rhode Island's testing begins in later grades, so the absence of scores here reflects the grade band, not a gap in performance. The same applies to graduation rates, AP or dual-credit coursework, and other measures that attach to older students. What the data does offer is a picture of enrollment, demographics, and the community surrounding this small school.
The enrollment is moderate for an early-grades building, with the largest share in kindergarten and first grade and a smaller pre-kindergarten cohort. The student body is predominantly white, with a Hispanic population that makes up the next largest group, and very small representation across other racial categories. Just over a third of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which gives a sense of the economic mix in the surrounding area. The data does not include counts for special education or English learners, so those figures are not available here.
Harrisville is a small historic mill village set along the Clear River in the town of Burrillville, in Providence County. Publicly reported sources describe it as a former textile manufacturing center built around the Stillwater Mills, which ceased textile operations decades ago. Parts of the former mill complex now house various small businesses, but no major employer dominates the village today, and most residents commute outside the community for work. Much of Harrisville sits within a National Register Historic District, preserving its 19th and early 20th century mill village architecture. The compact, walkable core centers on Main Street and East Avenue, with the Town Office Complex and Ninth District Court located nearby as civic anchors. The school itself sits on School Street, within or adjacent to the historic district boundary, suggesting the campus is woven into the village center rather than set apart from it. Publicly reported sources did not turn up information about parks, a library branch, or public transit in the village, so those details are missing here.
The housing market in the school's zip code sits below the statewide benchmark but above the national figure, with a price-to-income ratio that reflects a moderately stretched affordability picture for the region. Mortgage rates in the current environment remain elevated, which compounds that pressure for families looking to buy. The village's housing stock is older, much of it dating to the mill village era, and its historic district status limits large-scale development. Population estimates suggest slight growth over the most recent survey period, but no major new housing developments were identified.
At the district level, Burrillville has weathered several years of budget pressure. Voters rejected a school budget override, and the most recent municipal budget holds the property tax rate flat while level-funding the school department's request relative to what the district sought. The district also eliminated its International Baccalaureate diploma program at the high school after the 2023-24 school year, a decision publicly reported as driven by cost and declining enrollment. That program change does not directly affect families at Austin T. Levy, but it does signal the fiscal constraints the district is working within, which can shape offerings across the system over time.
For a parent considering Austin T. Levy, the school represents a community-rooted early-grades experience in a village with a strong sense of place. The absence of testing data is expected for this age range and should not be read as a weakness. What is missing from the available data is information about special populations, staffing ratios, program specifics, and discipline, so a parent may want to look into those areas further with the school directly.
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