by Billy Kepner | Feb 20, 2020 | Council News, Press Release, Ward-12, Ward-13, Ward-14, Ward-3
Councilwoman Nirva LaFortune (Ward 3), Councilwoman KatherineKerwin (Ward 12) and Councilwoman Rachel Miller (Ward 13) tonight will introduce a resolution calling on the Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) to increase funding for social and emotional learning and support services. They are also requesting that RIDE eliminate school-based School Resource Officers (SROs) in the City’s school district.
In multiple studies that assess the overall effectiveness of counselors, social-emotional support and learning generate positive student outcomes. An increase in funding for social, emotional support and learning; the implementation of a comprehensive safety plan that includes protocols for emergency drills; and the creation of a School Safety, Culture, and Climate Team in each school provides a more engaged and supportive learning community where students can thrive. The two resolutions provide a framework for the role of SROs, an increase in social and emotional support and learning, elimination of school-based School Resource Officers and most importantly, an avenue for more robust community engagement with students, families, teachers and administrators in the planning and monitoring of school safety.
“I have met with our young people and student groups on multiple occasions over the past year to discuss student needs. I have also researched numerous educational structures and models around safety and climate in public schools. The need across the board is for additional school counselors and social-emotional support. Our students want to learn and thrive in an environment where they feel safe and where they can escape adverse experiences and encounters that happen outside of school walls,” stated Councilwoman Nirva LaFortune. “Students want to be able to walk through the building without fear of being arrested for nonviolent criminal infractions. Teachers and administrators see the need for social-emotional support in our schools. They want to work in an environment where they feel safe and can focus on educating and developing our young people. It is our responsibility to provide the tools and resources to create an environment where teachers can effectively teach, our students can learn and thrive, our administrators can focus on developing strategies and opportunities to move our schools forward and our families can feel supported and know that their children are safe. School Resource Officers can serve as excellent partners and resources but not as a first line of defense when addressing minor and common adolescent infractions, which could be better addressed by school administrators. Our schools are not prisons; they are environments for learning. It is time that we invest in proactive approaches that do not lead to violent incidents or create a pipeline to prison instead of a pathway to success. We need counselors, social-emotional support and learning in our schools, not armed officers.”
According to Leadership for Educational Equity, studies conducted by the University of Maryland in 2011, and a study included in 2015’s Adolescent Research Review, schools with an increased police presence saw higher rates of incidents than schools without. Other studies cited that a disproportionate amount of students of color and those with disabilities were referred to law enforcement for school-based incidents over their Caucasian counterparts.
Councilwoman Kat Kerwin stated, “I am so proud of the youth organizers of Providence who have spent hours of time advocating for a school district that no longer accepts the school to prison pipeline as the norm, but instead demands dignity. This is an excellent first step to ensuring that school resource officers are not the first line of defense for disciplinary issues as we begin to envision a district with more social and emotional support rather than armed school police officers.”
The resolution clearly lays out that it is the role of principals, teachers and other educators to administer school disciplinary action, and that any disciplinary action must support personal growth, as well as provide opportunities for the students and their peers to learn from any incident that might occur. Most importantly, any discipline administered needs to be done in a way that keeps students in their classrooms whenever possible. School-based incidents should not be punished by harsh or exclusionary measures or through the justice system.
With the takeover of the Providence Public Schools by RIDE late last year, changes to the current school culture are necessary to improve the overall holistic health of our system and the students within the care of the district. Organizations like the Providence Student Union (PSU) have galvanized students across the City to ensure that their “frustrations, demands, and dreams are heard.” One of PSU’s main objectives is ending the racist and arbitrary disciplinary practices in and out of Providence’s city schools.
In addition to this resolution, Councilwoman LaFortune, along with her colleagues, Deputy Majority Leader Mary Kay Harris (Ward 11), Councilwoman Katherine Kerwin (Ward 12), and Councilman David A. Salvatore (Ward 14) will put forth a resolution requesting that the Providence Public School District and the Providence Police Department enter into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) regarding the role of SROs in Providence city schools.
The MOU would set forth guidelines to ensure that the School District and Police Department have a shared understanding of the role and responsibilities in maintaining school safety, improving the climate in city schools, and supporting the educational opportunities and outcomes for every student in the City’s care.
The primary role of the SROs is to improve school safety and the educational climate of schools; any disciplinary action should fall to the school’s principal and educators and must support personal growth and learning opportunities.
by Billy Kepner | Feb 20, 2020 | Council News, Press Release, Ward-10, Ward-15, Ward-9
At tonight’s City Council meeting Councilman Pedro Espinal (Ward 10) along with his colleagues, Council President Sabina Matos (Ward 15), Councilwoman Helen Anthony (Ward 2), Councilwoman Rachel Miller (Ward 13), Councilwoman Carmen Castillo (Ward 9), and Councilman David A. Salvatore (Ward 14) will call on the City Plan Commission to deny the application of Allens Providence Recycling LLC.
“As the Councilor for Ward 10 it is not my intention to stand in the way of bringing new businesses to my Ward,” stated Councilman Pedro Espinal. “That said, when the business in question could potentially have serious consequences for the environment and the well-being of my constituents, I will speak out. Our residents deserve to have clean air and clean water. I believe that any new business development along the Port should incorporate multi-use buildings and our goal as a City should be to clean-up Allens Avenue and the waterfront and make the area more hospitable for all of our residents and visitors alike.”
The proposed facility could potentially accept, process, and haul 2,500 tons of construction and commercial waste per day. This increase in industrial traffic will undoubtedly cause more pollution along Allens and Thurbers Avenues, in an area that is already considered a “frontline community” by the City of Providence’s recently published Climate Justice Plan.
The neighborhoods adjacent to the proposed industrial recycling location have the highest rate of childhood asthma in both the City and State and are ranked ninth in the nation, along with the highest rates of emergency room visits among children on Medicaid with Asthma in the City.
“I stand with Councilman Espinal in his support for the well-being of the residents of Lower South Providence and Washington Park,” stated Council President Sabina Matos. “I, like my colleagues, are always looking for ways to bring new businesses to our city, but we must do so with an eye on the ramifications of what proposed businesses can have on the environment and the surrounding communities. The proposed location, being so close to the Port of Providence, causes me further concern due to my fears of the potential for further pollution of the Narragansett Bay.”
The sponsors of the resolution have serious concerns with the project’s failure to meet the City’s Comprehensive Plan’s provisions regarding environmental sustainability and their ability to avoid disproportionate environmental burdens on residents. They are also concerned with the potential health impacts posed by the proposed industrial recycling operation in an area that is already highly impacted by pollution. In addition, they have concerns about the long-term impacts that a facility like what is being proposed might have on future development in and around the Port of Providence.
Councilwoman Carmen Castillo stated, “We must work to protect the safety of our residents at all costs. It pains me to know that so many young children are suffering from asthma in this one section of our City. It is a wake-up call that we, as elected officials, need to do more to protect our residents. I ask that the CPC deny this application.”
Upon passage, a copy of the resolution will be sent to Chairwoman Christine West of the Providence City Plan Commission, Director Bonnie Nickerson of the Department of Planning and Development, and the registered principals of Allens Providence Recycling, LLC.
by Billy Kepner | Feb 13, 2020 | Council News, Press Release, Ward-15
City Council President Sabina Matos announces that the Providence Parks Department is making several enhancements to Donigian Park.
“Donigian Park is a special place in Olneyville and is changing the way the neighborhood interacts with nature,” stated City Council President Sabina Matos. “Over my years on the Council I have invested nearly $100K in funding to create a waterpark, play spaces, and now a brand new concession stand that will include restrooms. Being a park along the Woony River Greenway so many visitors come through the park, and having facilities to enhance the park will make for a wonderful visitor experience.”
Currently, the construction of the concession stand and bathrooms are about 85% complete and with good weather will be completed in early spring. In the coming months and years, there will be even more improvements. Through 2019 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Funding the City will be making improvements to the field including regrading and installation of an irrigation system. In addition, there will be some fence replacement and reorientation along Cutler Street. All projects will begin construction in early summer of 2020.
Council President Matos continued, “I’m very excited to announce that we will begin a design for playground improvements later this year. Those improvements likely won’t come to fruition until 2021, but it is great to see things moving forward. I look forward to seeing my neighbors there this summer, especially for our annual Movie Night at Donigian!”
Much of the funding for improvements in the park have come from Council President Matos’ Neighborhood Infrastructure Funding, CDBG funding, and part of the City’s Capital Improvement Plan that was recently passed by the City Council.
Pictured is the new concession stand and restroom facilities at Donigian Park.
by Billy Kepner | Feb 12, 2020 | Council News, Press Release, Ward-6
The Providence Police Department has announced that they have arrested a serial vandal who has defaced multiple pieces of public property in the Manton area of Providence. I would like to extend my thanks and congratulations to Captain Fernandes for a job well done, and for his outstanding work in making this arrest. Jesus Ruiz has been arrested on eight misdemeanor counts for graffiti (some of his graffiti can be seen below).
Vandalism will not be tolerated in Ward Six, or anywhere in Providence. I am a fan of “Street Art” when it has been commissioned or the artist has received permission to create art on a specific site. But, there is a difference between that work and vandalism, and we must remember that.
Michael Correia, President Pro Tempore
Providence City Council
Councilman – Ward 6
by Billy Kepner | Feb 12, 2020 | Council News, Press Release, Ward-14
President Trump is at it again! He has called on cities across the nation to deal with homelessness, yet in his proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2021 he is level funding homelessness grants. He is also proposing to slash the budget of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) by 15 percent. If we are serious about solving our nation-wide housing crisis, providing for our veterans and seniors, and helping the homeless a top down approach is imperative. This proposed budget does not do any of those things, and that is shameful.
Federal tax dollars need to be allocated to help city’s like Providence address the pressing issues we face like homelessness, protecting our seniors, providing for our veterans, and creating safe infrastructure for our community. In short, these funds are not entitlements or handouts, but they are desperately needed to create a safer and more equitable country.
Since the creation of the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program under the auspices of HUD in 1974, Providence has been able to assist some of our most vulnerable community members. We have been able to create safety infrastructure around our schools and support organizations, like Sojourner House, which supports and advocates for victims of domestic violence and human trafficking.
Providence has allocated monies to AIDS Project Rhode Island that serves and advocates for those who are dealing with the myriad of issues that come with an HIV diagnosis – like access to treatment, fair housing, and prevention programs. CDBG Funds have been used to help provide families who have limited incomes make emergency repairs to their homes that they could otherwise not afford. These funds have helped organizations like the Smith Hill CDC take blighted properties and transform them into affordable housing units.
It is unconscionable that the President would propose these cuts without providing a road map of how the federal government is going to assist our most vulnerable residents. I urge Congress to take the lead where the President has failed us. Invest in the future of our country by investing in our most vulnerable residents.
David A. Salvatore
Providence City Council
Councilman – Ward 14
