Reading's Austin Preparatory School to Renovate Facilities with MassDevelopment Bond

February 21, 2018

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contacts:
Meggie Quackenbush, MassDevelopment, 617-330-2011 & 857-208-2777 (cell)
mquackenbush@massdevelopment.com

John Weber, Austin Preparatory School, 781-944-4900 ext. 821
jweber@austinprep.org

MassDevelopment has issued a $3 million tax-exempt bond for Austin Preparatory School, a private Catholic middle and high school in Reading. Austin Preparatory School will use bond proceeds to renovate and equip the school’s dining hall and kitchen facilities. Salem Five Bank purchased the bond.

“Austin Preparatory School has spent more than 60 years building a cohesive and comprehensive learning community for its students,” said MassDevelopment President and CEO Lauren Liss. “We are pleased this financing will help the school update its facilities and continue creating that environment for Massachusetts’ young learners.”

Founded in 1961, Austin Preparatory School began with a first class of 18 high school boys. Today, the school has a coeducational enrollment of 750 students from 55 area communities and countries that include China, Korea, Italy, and Vietnam. The school has more than 60 clubs and organizations and 22 athletic interscholastic programs. All students who graduate from Austin Preparatory School are accepted to four-year colleges and universities.

“The renovation of the dining hall, kitchen, and main lobby will refresh these spaces, which are the center of community at Austin Prep,” said Austin Preparatory School Headmaster James Hickey, Ph.D. “The renovations enable us to upgrade our dining experience to an all-inclusive lunch plan, modeling a college dining atmosphere that supports a holistic approach to education that advances wellness, nutrition, and environmental sustainability.”

MassDevelopment, the state’s finance and development agency, works with businesses, nonprofits, financial institutions, and communities to stimulate economic growth across the Commonwealth. During FY2017, MassDevelopment financed or managed 377 projects generating investment of more than $4.3 billion in the Massachusetts economy. These projects are projected to create about 9,488 jobs and build or rehabilitate 1,863 residential units.