Thank you for sending off the Class of 2026 with words of encouragement and wisdom @RepGabeAmo! This special group of graduates is sure to make the world a better and greener place. We believe in you and love you, Class of 2026!

The risks of tech for public education are real but blanket bans would be disastrous because we need AI, used in a smart and safe way, to help us overcome intractable obstacles to student success, most importantly what I call the "Catch-up Crisis." the74million.org/article/ame…

“Child poverty is a policy choice. It does not need to exist.” — our ED @PaigeCParks at the Raising RI Coalition kickoff 🔥✨

Statement from the family of Alex Pretti, Michael and Susan Pretti:  “We are heartbroken but also very angry.    Alex was a kindhearted soul who cared deeply for his family and friends and also the American veterans whom he cared for as an ICU nurse at the Minneapolis VA hospital. Alex wanted to make a difference in this world. Unfortunately he will not be with us to see his impact. I do not throw around the hero term lightly. However his last thought and act was to protect a woman.    The sickening lies told about our son by the administration are reprehensible and disgusting. Alex is clearly not holding a gun when attacked by Trump’s murdering and cowardly ICE thugs. He has his phone in his right hand and his empty left hand is raised above his head while trying to protect the woman ICE just pushed down all while being pepper sprayed.    Please get the truth out about our son. He was a good man. Thank you”

I invite you to honor my mother, #CorettaScottKing, with me. Without her, there would be no federal holiday commemorating my father’s birthday. And @TheKingCenter, which she founded less than three months after Daddy was assassinated, would not exist. I’m grateful for her commitment to freedom, true peace, justice, and Kingian nonviolence. I’m inspired by her love for humanity, her faith in God, and her consistency to purpose. Salute, Mama. #MLKDay #MLK #MissionPossibleMLK #TheKingCenter

🧵1/ Neighbors, today @Globe_RI published my op-ed on the state of ECHO Village. I’m calling on @GovDanMcKee to declare a state of emergency, cut through the red tape, and open these shelters immediately to save lives. Delays have left unhoused residents in the cold as homelessness doubles statewide. The time to act is now. Click here to view: bostonglobe.com/2024/12/24/m… ———— R.I.’s housing crisis continues — yet fully built pallet shelters sit empty Governor McKee should use his authority to open the shelters immediately to get people off the streets, says Providence City Councilor Justin Roias Four winters. That’s how long unhoused Providence residents have been forced to sleep on icy streets since ECHO Village was first proposed. And now the proven, ready-to-go solution sits empty. Forty-five warm units, fully built, gathering dust here in the ward I represent. From day one, this process has been met with delay after delay. And while state leaders slog through unnecessarily burdensome regulatory processes, the number of unhoused Rhode Islanders has more than doubled. When this project was initially proposed, there were 1,267 unhoused Rhode Islanders. Now, as the cost of housing and the cost of living have skyrocketed, there are 2,442. This is a matter of life and death. Last year alone, 54 unsheltered Rhode Islanders lost their lives. Our neighbors need us. House of Hope recognized the urgency of this crisis and brought a solution to the table in 2019. Various locations were attempted, and finally, one was chosen. Years after conception, the pallet shelters were delivered and assembled in Ward 4, and March 2024 was set for the opening. The Department of Housing, the General Assembly, and the Fire Marshal’s Office had years to anticipate regulatory challenges, and yet here we are. New open dates came and went, and still nothing. Bureaucratic red tape has stood in the way of saving lives, and the public has been left to wonder: are we really doing everything we can to help the people who need it most? Homelessness is a complicated issue. At its root are our greatest struggles: stagnating wages, soaring housing costs, the opioid epidemic, our failing education system, domestic violence, the mistreatment of veterans, racism, and white supremacy. Long-term solutions that cut to the core may be decades away, but the short-term doesn’t have to go this way. The immediate way to get people off the streets is to put them in beds. We need to stop ranking one life over another. Government officials need to imagine it is our family members who are freezing on the streets while beds sit empty just blocks away, and act with the urgency that demands. Providence City Council can serve as a model for this. Last month, the council approved a new Comprehensive Plan, the 10-year road map that guides land use. Under the leadership of Councilor Miguel Sanchez, we included language that ensures the city institutes humane, housing-first solutions, including temporary permits for emergency shelters, improved services to encampments, increased mental health and substance use treatment, and the development of permanent housing. The Comprehensive Plan commits the city to a new direction on homelessness: one that keeps compassion and public health at its center. Last week, Governor McKee doubled down, saying he’s unwilling to challenge remaining obstacles because “the safety factor is the top priority.” Is it safe to look the other way as people live in freezing temperatures? Is it safe to leave families with no options as shelter waitlists grow longer and longer? Is safety really being prioritized as the governor stands idly by while 54 unhoused residents lose their lives in a single year? The ECHO Village delays clearly represent the state’s failure to recognize the housing crisis for what it is: an emergency.

You can find me over here from now on as well as all TGS news…

"Never underestimate a public school teacher." — @Tim_Walz #DNC2024

Ward 7: TOMORROW don't miss Councilwoman Ana Vargas' Family Kids Fun Day happening in the neighborhood🎉

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“If you empower a young woman, you empower a whole community.” -Leymah Gbowee #International_Womens_Day

Great season Cavaliers!

Hope is your Division IV champ!

Thank you, @RyanWPearson @JARhodeIsland and @TeachForAmerica for this wonderful learning opportunity for our youth!

Way to go, girls! What a season! From D2 champs to D1 champs in a year - everyone at @360_HighSchool is so proud of you. @Official_JSEC

Happy birthday, Ella Baker! There would not have been a SNCC without Ella Baker.

Thx @360_HighSchool for hanging out with us today at Tillinghast Pond! Great pics!

NEWS FLASH!!  Black History extends beyond the month of February.  It’s year round!! Let’s teach our youth their history on a daily basis.  We have Reconstructors ready to assist. info.reconstruction.us/enter… #blackhistory #education #blackhistory365 #wetheculture #blackfamily