This week, the Director of Revere Community School (RCS), Fatou Drammeh, presented at Revere Public School’s monthly Family Engagement Night.
The brainchild of Assistant Superintendent of Equity and Inclusion, Dr. Lourenço Garcia, back when he was principal at the high school, RCS unites lifelong learners with community and partner resources to empower adult learners and encourage workforce development, health and wellness, community awareness, and civic participation.
RCS's goal is to help residents become part of the larger Revere community and achieve their own goals professionally or personally through English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), citizenship, High School Equivalency Diploma (HiSET), computer, Spanish, workforce development, and financial literacy classes.
At the meeting, Drammeh highlighted the school’s free HiSET. HiSET is designed to assist high school dropouts and adults in preparing to obtain their high school diplomas. All students applying for HiSET classes complete a placement test for appropriate skill assessment and studies including language, reading, social studies, science, and mathematics classes. Drammeh said the classes meet in person on Tuesday and Thursday evenings from 5:30-8:00 pm at Revere High School.
“Not too long ago, I was a student who achieved my High School Diploma. With a lot of hard work and dedication, you can overcome any obstacles,” said RCS HiSET graduate Patricia Casoli. "I was proud to get my diploma, but it was not easy. Adult learners face unique challenges when returning to the classroom, but they also bring a lot of valuable life experiences to the table. Don’t let your concerns hold you back from achieving your goals. Revere Community School will put in the time to get you there as long as you put in the work.”
"Our goal for RCS is to continue to grow and expand the program by collaborating with higher learning, training programs and workforce development programs to provide more opportunities for adult residents of Revere,” said Drammeh.
Drammeh said another popular program at RCS is the free Computer-Basic and Workforce Development courses.
“We offer free basic and intermediate computer classes with participants eligible to receive a free new Chromebook and access to the internet with IT services after completing a 15-hour training,” said Drammeh. “Classes are offered online and in-person. These programs will help students develop technology skills and the ability to access information online, search for jobs, attend school, and enrich their quality of life. The basic courses focus on Google applicants, and the intermediate classes focus on Windows 101 and Microsoft Office.”
In 2024 alone, RCS offered 69 Digital Literacy Courses with 761 Revere residents graduating from the course.
Established in 2013, RCS is a city-funded program under the Talent and Culture Department and hosted by the Revere School district. RCS unites lifelong learners with community and partner resources to empower its adult learners and encourage workforce development, health and wellness, community awareness, and civic participation. Their mission is to ensure quality, robust community-based learning opportunities for residents of Revere, where they can improve their English language skills, attend college preparedness classes, gain employment and citizenship preparation.
Last year, the school celebrated 10 years of successful community education. During this time, they have served over 8,000 learners who have attended over 500 classes/courses.
If you missed Tuesday’s presentation, you can click on the PDFs below to see Drammeh’s PowerPoint in English, Spanish, Portuguese, or Arabic to learn more about RCS.