Reaction to Return of Providence Schools to City Control - Cheers, Criticisms, and Questions

Reaction to Return of Providence Schools to City Control - Cheers, Criticisms, and Questions

The news that the Rhode Island Department of Education is returning the management of the Providence Schools to the City of Providence has drawn a range of comments and control.

Providence Mayor Brett Smiley has had a checkered relationship with the schools. RIDE sued the Smiley administration for failure to make its share of education funding. The lawsuit ended in a settlement in 20024. Smiley’s administration was rocked by the cost, thrusting the city into a financial emergency. Smiley was forced to raise taxes to a near-record level.

Now, Smiley is claiming he is fighting for the schools.

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“As you know, this is something I have fought for year-after-year. And make no mistake - Providence is ready. The first thing I did as mayor was hold a series of community listening sessions on education, and since then, we have continued to gather feedback, building a return-to-local-control blueprint that incorporates the voices of thousands of our community members. We have spent every day of the last four years planning and preparing - not just to ensure a smooth transition, but also to guarantee that our students and faculty will be well-served by a school system that is more ready than ever to deliver better services and stronger outcomes,” said Smiley.

 

Block Questions Decision

Independent candidate for Governor, Ken Block, is issuing warnings about returning the schools to Providence. In 2019, a study by Johns Hopkins rated Providence schools as the worst in the country. Since that report, there has been little improvement in test scores.

Block said, "While the state has had control of the school system for six years, not nearly enough change and improvement has been made. Less than 20% of Providence public school system students are at grade level."

"All of the adults involved in educating our urban core public school students share the blame for this failure. No one in charge of the Providence schools - neither the city nor the state - has brought the changes that our most disadvantaged students desperately need,” Block added.

"I disagree with handing control of the Providence schools back to local officials. Six years of state control should have led to far more substantial and impactful changes. The Providence public school system is failing its students and making the adult lives of its 'graduates' substantially harder than they should be,” said Block

 

Morales Comments

Smiley’s rival also celebrated the return of the school to city control.

Mayoral candidate Rep. David Morales said in a statement:

Every child in Providence deserves a quality education that helps them grow socially, emotionally, and academically. Our schools transitioning back to local control represents a meaningful opportunity to improve family engagement and support for our 19,000-plus students in the Providence Public School Department. 

As our next Mayor, I’m committed to working in partnership with families, students, educators, school board members, and PPSD to intentionally invest in our schools and improve staffing conditions so we can accelerate the gradual gains in academic proficiency and attendance from the last several years.

Our students have complex needs that go well beyond academics. Since I first ran for state legislature in 2020, I have heard repeatedly from parents, educators, and students about the urgent need for staffing that supports these diverse needs. My administration will prioritize adding more multilingual educators to our classrooms, improving IEP services so all our students receive the attention and care they deserve, and increasing the availability of social and emotional support staff in every school across the city. Every student deserves the attention and care they need to thrive.