Founding

The school was founded on the initiative of the parents of Jeanie Lippitt, who became deaf due to scarlet fever when she was four years old in 1856. Her mother, Mary Ann Lippitt, taught Jeanie to communicate through lip reading and speaking.

Jeanie's father, Henry Lippitt, became governor of Rhode Island in 1875. During these years, Jeanie visited the Rhode Island State house to convince members of the General Assembly to establish a school for deaf children. Henry's political endorsements allowed Jeanie's wishes to come true in 1877 when the General Assembly passed a bill to found a deaf school. The Rhode Island School for the Deaf is still functioning today in 2018.^[1][2]

Post-founding

Circa 1966 John F. Fogarty, a member of the Legislature of Rhode Island, got into a conflict with Governor of Rhode Island John Chafee after Fogarty accused the school of being poorly run. The State Board of Education hired three outside consultants and they wrote a report criticizing the management of the school, asking for it to be restructured. It specifically criticized how there were no refurbishments since 1935 and it also criticized the dormitories though the report was not sure whether the dormitories should be abolished.^[3]

School name history

• 1876–1879: Providence Day School for the Deaf
• 1880–1888: Rhode Island School for the Deaf
• 1889–1892: State School for the Deaf
• 1895–1930: Rhode Island Institute for the Deaf
• 1931–present: Rhode Island School for the Deaf

Principals/directors

• 1876–1882: Joseph Warren Homer
• 1882–1885: Katherine H. Austin
• 1885–1889: Anna M. Black
• 1889–1906: Laura DeLisle Richards
• 1906–1918: Edwin G. Hurd
• 1918–1932: Anna C. Hurd
• 1932–1966: John Yale Crouter, grandnephew of Caroline Yale
• 1966–2001: Peter M. Blackwell
• 2001–2003: Reginald Redding
• 2003–2007: John F. Plante (interim director)
• 2007–2011: Lori Dunsmore ( Director)
• 2012–2023: Nancy Maguire Heath
• 2023-Present: Sarah McGaughey

Source:^[4]

Cross country

Cross country was one of the first varsity sports offered by Rhode Island School for the Deaf (RISD). According to records from Rhode Island Interscholastic League (RIIL), RISD started competing in RIIL and New England meets in 1944.

RISD is one of just three deaf schools to have had a state champion in cross country. This was in 1969. RISD offered cross country until the late 1970s when popularity in the sport started to dwindle and the school then shifted their fall sport offering to soccer for their boys' students.

Soccer

RISD started fielding a boys' soccer team during the late 1970s and competed in RIIL-sanctioned games as well as New England Schools for the Deaf (NESD) tournaments. RISD won 12 NESD soccer tournaments from 1980 through 2002, and won two International Friendship Tournaments, held at New York State School for the Deaf in Rome, New York.

RISD also had a girls' soccer team from the late 1980s through 2003. The girls' soccer team was very strong during this time, winning seven NESD soccer titles and seven International Friendship soccer tournaments.

Now, RISD fields a coed varsity soccer team during the fall season that competes as an independent school in R.I. Interscholastic competitions and as a full member of Eastern Schools for the Deaf Athletic Association (ESDAA), competing in the annual end-of-season ESDAA Division II 8-man soccer tournaments.

Boys' basketball

The boys' basketball team won six consecutive NESD boys' basketball championships in the 1970s, and two ESDAA championships. RISD has won 9 ESDAA Division II Boys' Basketball championships. To date, RISD has had 21 boy students who recorded over 1,000 points during their varsity basketball career, and three students who scored over 2,000 points

RISD was one of the founding member of the Coastal Prep League, a private school boys' basketball athletic conference, and won the first three conference championships from 1992 to 1994. RISD won one more CPL championship in 2009, before leaving the league starting in 2017–18.

RISD continues to field a varsity boys' basketball team that competes as an independent school in R.I. Interscholastic competitions and as a full member of ESDAA, competing in the annual end-of-season ESDAA Division II tournaments.

Girls' basketball

RISD started to field a girls' basketball team in the mid-1970s, and success followed shortly, winning four NESD girls' basketball tournaments from 1979 to 1982. RISD's girls' basketball team has won 12 ESDAA Division II girls' basketball tournaments from 1979 through 2007. To date, RISD has had 8 girl students who recorded over 1,000 points during their varsity basketball career, and one who scored over 2,000 points.

RISD continues to field a varsity girls' basketball team that competes as an independent school in R.I. Interscholastic competitions and as a full member of ESDAA, competing in the annual end-of-season ESDAA Division II tournaments.

Track and field

RISD has a long history in track and field. Three of its boy students earned RIIL state titles, and three hold standing ESDAA Boys' Track & Field records. The school team has twice finished second in the ESDA Track & Field Championships.

RISD girls' track & field team has had a number of excellent individual performers. Their best finish as a team in ESDAA Track & Field Championships was 3rd place, accomplished seven times. RISD has also sent a number of students to the Deaflympics, the Olympic competition for athletes who are deaf and/or hard-of-hearing, in the sport of girls basketball and track and field.

Other sports