It started with one student in a brand-new Montessori preschool in Richmond in 2004. Twenty-one years later, there are 561 students at Richmond College Prep (RCP), a K-8 public charter school in the Iron Triangle neighborhood. Those years tell a story of perseverance and dedication, leading to RCP becoming the top-performing public school that serves majority low-income students and students of color in Richmond.
The school has defied every stereotype and overcome every obstacle in its way.
“We became an example that it can be done,” said Peppina Liano, who retired last year after serving as the founding CEO of RCP for 20 years. “We got to demonstrate that success is possible for students, if we all put in the work. Students aren’t just an ID number, they’re people with needs, and mutual respect is the key.”
Over the past several years, RCP has achieved impressive academic results. The school’s 2024 SBAC results set the school apart, both overall and in terms of improvement, with 53.7% proficiency in English Language Arts — a 7.7% increase from the previous year. In mathematics, the school achieved 50% proficiency, a 12.1% increase in the same time frame.
What accounts for RCP’s strong work with students? It’s about getting several key pieces right.
Continuing the momentum of RCP’s success
Ms. Liano held a leadership role in WCCUSD before starting RCP, as did the school’s new CEO, Dr. Keisha Prier. Dr. Prier spent the last three years as an Executive Director in WCCUSD, supporting 19 of the 36 elementary schools in the district, before taking the helm at RCP in August 2024. She was drawn to the school because of its close ties to the community and its focus on instruction and student outcomes.
“RCP is the perfect fit for me,” Dr. Prier said. “The foundation has been set in the school, and I’m here to continue the growth that’s already made.”
Dr. Prier hopes to build on every aspect of the momentum at RCP.
There are many contributors to that momentum, including an essential part of the RCP model: the role of instructional aides. The instructional aides contribute daily to student success, helping teachers with small group instruction and classroom management. They’re also deeply rooted in the Richmond community, as most of them are from the area, and still live there. The instructional aides’ dedication to RCP students is reciprocated by the school’s investment in them. There’s an established pipeline at the school between being an instructional aide and becoming a teacher there, which speaks to RCP’s dedication to serving its community and building leadership from within the school. In fact, both directors at RCP were former instructional aides.
Of course, the instructional aides are just one group of the dedicated education professionals who strive for success every day at RCP, which is something Dr. Prier wants to focus on as she settles into her new role.
“My theory of action is really around professional development, and investing in the leaders and the teachers so they can be at their best for kids,” Dr. Prier said. “I want to create a space for consistent professional development, and more opportunities for the staff to get together to talk about data, to get training, and to do observations in each other’s classrooms and at other schools. I want them to grow and learn together.” As a long time partner, the Chamberlin Foundation was thrilled to provide a grant to support Dr. Prier’s strong instructional vision and drive positive outcomes for students in Richmond.
The details are in the data
Conversations about data are another crucial part of RCP’s intentional success.
“One of the things I believe has put RCP in the position they’re in is a lot of data analysis. We’re constantly monitoring progress, analyzing data, and tracking kids,” Diana Ramirez, Director of RCP’s Upper School said. “We have an intense focus on the kids who are on the cusp of being at grade level, and we try different instructional paths to get them to where they need to be. That data has been key.”
Teachers look at data multiple times a month, breaking down subgroups and different demographics, to truly understand how students are doing, inform instruction, and drive improvement.
“We use the data to constantly go back and create action plans and reassess current action plans,” Sarah Lego, Director of RCP’s Lower School said. “All teachers are entering data constantly so we can provide targeted intervention.”
The other key part of the equation that leads to RCP’s success is the support and buy-in from students’ families.
“A lot of families are really involved, and we try to do a lot to include them,” Lego said. “They really support us at the school, they trust us with their students, and they also do what they can at home to help their kids learn.”
Focus on teaching and learning
Improving teaching and learning is at the heart of every decision at RCP, ensuring that every child, in every grade, in every classroom receives the support they need to thrive. The school’s student population is 83% economically disadvantaged. 15% of the student population is Black, and 79% of it is Latinx. Although the student demographics shift over time, one thing has remained the same throughout RCP’s 21-year history: the dedication to the kids.
“Our focus, from the very beginning, was to educate the community and to start with the kids. We wanted to foster the next generation that would be able to think freely, and have the same access to the level of education that they’d have in private schools or in Lamorinda,” Neville Richardson, Chairman of the RCP Board, said. “We wanted to break all the divides. The economic divides, the wealth gap, and now, when we see how many kids have gone to college, or who have become leaders in our community, it’s clear that RCP is making a true impact.”
Those who show up daily to work at RCP are confident that the school’s best days are ahead.
“This entire staff, from the front office, to HR, to the back office staff go above and beyond to make things happen for the students, families, and staff here,” Dr. Prier said. “It’s been a concerted effort. I watch it and I applaud it. We’re all making sure all 561 kids get their needs met, and that we identify what we need to do to remove barriers for every single one of them. It’s a collaborative effort.”
Starting a new chapter at RCP
As she takes the lead at the school, Dr. Prier is also looking to identify the most effective strategies to best support the 41% of RCP students who are English Learners.In addition, she hopes to implement rigorous college prep classes for the students in higher grades.
“Bringing to life the name of the organization, Richmond College Prep, is important,” Dr. Prier said. “It’s what we really stand for and I want to make college readiness a big focus.”
There’s a noticeable, exhilarating optimism about what RCP is capable of in the coming years, with Dr. Prier stepping into her new role.
“She’s fired up. We’ve been investing in the future of our students and our teachers with training like we’ve never done before,” Richardson said. “I’m excited to see the fruit of the labor. Even though things were great at RCP, there’s really something about this new excitement and a fresh perspective going forward.”
