Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not in RI Politics?
Friday, January 27, 2012
Who’s Hot
Deborah Gist -> Rhode Island is ranked among the best in the country for teacher quality and while ultimately the educators should get the credit, Commissioner Gist deserves praise for the work she’s done in her time in the state. Gist has certainly helped lay the foundation for improving schools across the state.
Lincoln Chafee and Jim Bennett -> The Governor and Providence’s economic development director –a former candidate for Governor himself – are leading the charge along with Warwick Mayor Scott Avedisian to bring Jet Blue to T.F. Green. That won’t solve all of the state’s woes, but it’s certainly a step in the right direction. Plus, who doesn’t like satellite TV on a flight?
Joe Biden -> The Vice President is coming to town for a Senator Whitehouse fundraiser next month. This comes a week after House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi announced she would be coming to Rhode Island to help raise money for Congressmen Langevin and Cicilline. National Democrats are clearly going to do their best to keep Rhode Island blue in 2012.
J. Joseph Garrahy -> It was a sad week for Rhode Island with the passing of the well-liked former Governor. He’ll be remembered for calming the state down following the blizzard of ’78, but more importantly, as one former aide told GoLocalProv, he was the “nicest man I’ve ever met in government.”
Occupy Providence -> It appeared as though the group was slowly fading away, but it came back strong by securing an agreement with the city to open up a day shelter for the homeless. Whether the Occupiers can continue to have an impact on the state remains to be seen, but this was certainly a victory.
Keith Oliveira, Julian Dash, Barbara Wong -> All three were confirmed by the Providence City Council Finance Committee to be members of the School Board. Oliveira and Dash are being reappointed while Wong is a first-timer. Here’s hoping they can work to reform the city’s struggling school system over the next few years.
Who’s Not
Bob Watson -> A rough week for the former House Minority Leader. It’s scary to think of what could have happened had he not been pulled over. So while everyone hopes rehab will help him, it’s also worth mentioning that he deserves a severe punishment.
Jack Reed -> The Senator is getting criticized this week for essentially shrugging off requests from city and state leaders to step in and convince Bank of America to remain in the Superman building downtown. GoLocalProv was first to report about concerns that the bank could leave town six months ago, but very little appears to be happening to address the problem.
Doreen Costa -> Less than six months after the Board of Governors for Higher Education approved in-state tuition for illegal immigrants, Rep. Costa wants the decision repealed. It’s an easy way to score points with her base, but why not give it a chance and see what happens? The world hasn’t collapsed in the other states that offer in-state tuition, has it?
Achievement First -> Six months ago, it seemed like the Board of Regents was almost certainly going to approve this organization’s application to open a school in Providence. Now 9 state lawmakers from Warwick, North Providence and Cranston have voiced their concerns and a Providence City Councilman (Davian Sanchez) pulled his support this week. The momentum appears to be shifting.
Mitt Romney -> After looking invincible for several months, the former Massachusetts Governor looks like he might pull one of the largest choke jobs in recent memory. Newt Gingrich is now surging in the polls and for the first time, it looks like Romney may no longer be the frontrunner.
Rhode Island’s Business Community -> Another blow to the state’s business community as the Tax Foundation ranked Rhode Island 46th in the country for business tax climate. With the third highest unemployment rate in the country, something clearly needs to be done to start attracting new businesses. Because what’s happening right now isn’t working.
Editor's Note: The original version of this piece suggested Jet Blue offered cable TV. That, of course, was ridiculous. A correction has been made.
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- Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not in RI Politics?
- Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not in RI Politics?
- Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not in RI Politics?
- Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not in RI Politics?
- Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not in RI Politics?
- Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not in RI Politics?
Comments:
Winston Smith
6:19am on Friday, January 27, 2012
you talk about Mitt Romney on the national level. Does that belong in 'Whos hot / not in RI"?
george pratt
10:38am on Friday, January 27, 2012
It was a bad week for illegal aliens. Not Doreen Costa.
A bad week for the business community, is a bad week for all of Rhode Island.
Mark D
10:39am on Friday, January 27, 2012
The Rhode Island’s Business Community problem lies with the restrictions on business, regulations and tax liabilities created by the General Assembly.
Russ C
11:01am on Friday, January 27, 2012
"Rhode Island is ranked among the best in the country for teacher quality..."
Right there you have to question the work Gist has done in RI. A focus on individual rankings is an awful way to go about process improvement. Read Deming sometime, Dan (see The New Economics for Industry, Government, Education).
anthony sionni
11:49am on Friday, January 27, 2012
Rep. Costa is right,it should be repealed ! Who do these board of governors think they are,legislators now!
Aldo Palazzo
4:04pm on Friday, January 27, 2012
Check back in five years after she and Raimondo have moved on and left behind the smoking wreckage of their so called "reforms"!
She is VERY good at bringing in money but as for her “reforms”, that remains to be seen.
Administrators and teachers are already stressed over her RI Model evaluation system. Talk about needless paperwork. It will collapse under its own weight!
Improving the quality of teachers? Gina’s ‘reforms” have many young teachers questioning whether or not they’ve made the right decision.
Between Gist and Raimondo many of our best and brightest young teachers are considering cutting their losses and moving on.
Better to find new employment while they can than put up with the BS in Rhode Island!
Neither Gist nor Raimondo have ever taught in a secondary school environment but they are making recommendations as to how to “improve” RI Schools. Based upon what experience?
“Miss Debbie” taught a total of EIGHT years in grades 1, 2 and 3. This is an environment when all children are willing to learn. It’s “Yes Miss Debbie” May I please” etc. Not “F&^% You, I don’t have to..”
Remember the incident in Central Falls HS where she criticized a substitute for letting a student listen to his iPod in class. As Commissioner of education RESPONSIBLE for Central falls’ School why did she take action instead of leaving the room?
“Teacher of the Year?” Not in a state! Not in a District! But a single Elementary School>
I, for one am sick of the lack of real investigative reporting regarding Ms Gist background. She did a bang up job in Washington DC didn’t she? Some of the most heavily funded yet underperforming schools in the nation!
If GoLocalProv REALLY wants to inform Rhode Island, do an expose on Ms Gist. Is it true that RI Taxpayers are covering the cost of her PhD study?
george pratt
4:12pm on Friday, January 27, 2012
Aldo, I think its common for continuing education to be a benefit for people in education.
Odd Job
6:20pm on Friday, January 27, 2012
Dissed Costa, eh? Well, now we know which end of the table you guys sit on!
Joseph Fazio
7:50pm on Friday, January 27, 2012
Gist...HOT?? Come on! Please point to one thing she has done to improve the quality of education to Rhode Island children! Nothing, not one program! Her PR person has a field day setting up pics with the golden apple to parochial school teachers. She has survived this long because her buddy from the Broad Institute - Arne Duncan - can her a pot of money. That money is being squeezed through and eye dropper because Gist is hiring consultant to build a bigger kingdom. Go back 20 years and the RIDE was a 12 man operation and cities and towns determined WHAT the scope of learning would be for kids. Now everyone turns to Providence and asks the goddess..."what shall we do." The state does not need Gist, they need less interference, less regulations, less dictates, and less added cost to education. Tell Gist to go sit in the corner and shut up.
Gary Arnold
9:09pm on Friday, January 27, 2012
Gist has gone against the grain of RI entrenched education, politics and unions but she has worked with them also, as she has to.
I do not understand anyone that takes issue with Gist, other than the fact that she has pushed meaningful change to better the chances of kid’s success.
I don’t agree with everything but I do agree that dramatic changes need to be instituted in our education system.
As far as Chaffee goes, I do not agree with his no plan, no vision for the good of all in RI. He is not a leader and therefore he is the wrong person for RI at a time that we need a leader that others will respect and accept that leader’s mentorship to reinvent RI.
JetBlue is a good thing but it’s not part of a big picture in how to bring RI back to solvency.
Michael Trenn
9:14pm on Friday, January 27, 2012
Will Biden do his fake " Indian Call Center worker" voice here as well? In case you Democrats missed it, Joe Biden is a racist idiot. I think I'll call him Joe Bidet from now on.
Aldo Palazzo
11:21pm on Friday, January 27, 2012
"I think its common for continuing education to be a benefit for people in education.- George Pratt"
Really? Tell that to the teachers in this state who fund their own continuing Ed courses to meet the state's constantly changing mandates.
They don't do it on the taxpayers’ dime like Gist!
Do a little research!
"I do not understand anyone that takes issue with Gist... - Gary Arnold"
Then you have obviously bought into her PR BS!!!
Check my previous post and do a bit of background research on her yourself!
I guess you believe DC has some of the best schools in the nation too? After all Gist and Rhee both markedly improved the District's schools before they left! LOL!!!