New parking plan for visitors to Davies Tech’s Open House

LINCOLN – The administration at the William M. Davies Jr. Career & Technical High School at 50 Jenckes Hill Road has a stern directive for those planning on attending its annual Open House on Thursday, Oct. 23 between 6-8 p.m.

Because of limited parking spaces around the school, all visitors must park at the Community College of Rhode Island-Flanagan Campus lots next door. Once they do, they will be shuttled via school bus to the front doors at Davies so they can enter and discover all that it has to offer.

According to Communications & Marketing Director Jax Adele Ventura, the change in parking format is to ensure smoother traffic flow and safer access to the popular event.

“Each year, our open house brings over one thousand visitors to campus; we’re getting more and more visitors and we were getting inundated with vehicles,” she said. “We only have so many parking spots, so we’re working

collaboratively with CCRI. We will have our visitors park at CCRI, and we’ll have six buses running continuously between CCRI and our front doors.

“As soon as one is filled, it will come here and drop people off, then head back, and the other buses will follow suit. Hopefully, if everyone parks at CCRI and doesn’t try to come to Davies, there will be less traffic at the intersection of Jenckes Hill Road and Louisquisset Pike.”

Ventura also indicated Lincoln Police details will be directing cars away from Davies and toward CCRI, and that no one other than staff will be allowed to park on campus. A year ago, Davies officials decided to institute the CCRI parking and shuttle services for the first time, but also allowed parking on campus.

“Once the on-premises parking was full, everyone trying to come into the Davies’ parking lot ended up waiting in a long line of traffic and police had to get them to turn around,” she said. “Also last year, people not knowing about the shuttle service walked in the dark along Louisquisset Pike and Jenckes Hill Road, and it was unsafe. No one wants to see anybody get hurt, so we’re changing the parking plan.

“It’s also much quicker if people just get on the shuttle bus,” she continued. “We’ve been doing this for so many years, and parking on campus was never a problem; now it is because we have so many people interested in our CTE programs and are wanting to learn more about them.

“This plan has been in all of our marketing, so we’re hoping everyone is aware of the CCRI parking and shuttles so they don’t waste their time trying to park here.”

The open house is the only opportunity for current eighth – and ninth-grade Rhode Island residents and their families to visit the school, explore career and technical education (CTE) programs and learn about the admissions process. Families can tour hands-on technical labs, meet faculty and students and speak with academic, sports and after-school club representatives.

This year, Davies will showcase 10 technical programs, and they include the newly-added Cybersecurity course; Advanced Manufacturing; Automotive Careers; Biomanufacturing Technology; Education/Childcare; Electrical & Renewable Energy; Graphics & Interactive Media; Health Careers; Hospitality Careers; and Pre-Engineering Technology.

Prospective students also will be able to register for the required entrance/placement exam on-line. Among the exam dates: Nov. 1, 15 and 22 and Dec. 6 and 13. Registration will remain open until all seats are filled at DaviesTech.org/Admissions.

Davies serves approximately 900 students from all over Rhode Island, and it is a statewide public high school offering comprehensive academic studies and industry-aligned technical programs. While bus transportation is provided to students from Barrington, Bristol, Central Falls, Cranston, East Providence, Johnston, Lincoln, North Providence, Pawtucket, Providence, Smithfield and Warren, students from all communities around the region are welcome to apply.