The state has awarded 21 grants to local education agencies and nonprofit partners totaling $3.9 million. / COURTESY GOV. DANIEL J. MCKEE
WARWICK – State elected and education officials on Tuesday at Oakland Beach Elementary School announced that 21 grants totaling $3.9 million were awarded to local education agencies and their partnering sponsors aimed to expand access by extending learning opportunities to improve student outcomes within Rhode Island.
Gov. Daniel McKee’s office and the R.I. Department of Education said the grants were funded through the state’s portion of the American Rescue Plan Act’s Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief set-aside funding. The state back in October issued proposal requests for applications to foster new or expanded partnerships between a local education agency and one or more community-based organizations to provide afterschool learning and enrichment opportunities for students in a specific school or set of schools.
McKee’s office says the grants, which range between $61,000 to $399,547, runs through 2024. Additionally, McKee has proposed in his 2024 fiscal year state budget another $4 million in the #RIReady budget to expand supplemental high-quality learning experiences.
“To improve student outcomes, we are focused on shifting learning in Rhode Island from the traditional 180 school days to 365 days of learning, and we’re making the strategic investments to make it happen,” McKee said in a statement.
R.I. Education Commissioner Angelica Infante-Green said in her respective statement that students are heading in the right direction education-wise based on last year’s Rhode Island Common Assessment System test scores, but said “a lot of work remains.” These programs that received the grants “will help close the gap,” she said.
- D’Abate Elementary School, Providence; One Neighborhood Builders: $77,530
