Issue Position: Investing in Public Education

Issue Position

All our students deserve a high-quality education, a safe learning environment, mental health services, and teachers that are paid well. As a state, we have to further invest in the future of our Providence Public School students. I am proud to stand with education professionals, teachers, students, and their families.

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As your State Representative, I will unapologetically advocate for:

Updating Rhode Island's Education Funding Formula

We have an outdated funding formula that does not account for important factors in a school district, such as English-language learners, special needs students, and the rising costs of teaching materials. We need to immediately update our funding formula, so Providence Public Schools have the resources to fully invest in our students.

Repairing our Public School Buildings

There are countless schools in our community that are crumbling because of their age and lack of reinvestment. We need to prioritize the repairment of our public schools in the state budget. We cannot expect our students to succeed in an unsafe environment with safety hazards (e.g., falling roofs, faulty heating and cooling systems, broken windows, and deteriorating doors).

Mental Health Services for our Students

Across Providence, we have students with unaddressed trauma and mental health needs which prevent them from succeeding academically. It is necessary all our public schools have at least one full-time nurse and an adequate number of mental health professionals.

Fair Treatment for our Teacher Unions

It is incredibly important that all teachers are unionized and have the ability to collectively bargain. I am prepared to stand alongside teachers if they decide to strike against stagnant wages, staff shortages, inadequate working conditions, alongside other unfair practices. Teacher unions benefit everyone -- from students to parents. Here are just a few reasons why I will advocate for teacher unions across our state:
- Bargaining helps attract and retain high quality teachers
- Bargaining ensures fair employment practices - helping teacher morale
- Bargaining helps teachers receive they resources and supplies they need which improves teaching and learning
- Bargaining gives public educators a genuine voice to identify and solve school and classroom issues (as opposed to only administrators)

Hot Meals for our Students

No child should go hungry at school because of their economic situation. We need to provide all our students with free breakfast and lunch.

Expand Afterschool and Summer Learning Programs

All our students deserve access to high-quality afterschool and summer learning programs. Research has shown that students enrolled in academic programs outside of traditional learning hours are more likely to: improve their academic performance, reduce risky behaviors, promote physical health, and provide a safe environment for the children of working parents. Learning does not end in the classroom and in today's economy it is necessary we invest in programs that will provide our students with the critical skills they need to be successful after high school.

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