Higher Education
Having a degree or certificate from a college or university is one of the surest pathways to the middle class.
Unfortunately, a college degree is growing further out of reach. No Rhode Islander should be denied a college degree simply because of financial difficulty. That’s why as governor, Gina will:
- Create a Loan Forgiveness Program for graduates who agree to live and work in Rhode Island.
- Endow a new College Scholarship Fund for students who want to attend one of our excellent state colleges.
- Strengthen partnerships between the Community College of Rhode Island and businesses to create new curriculum and training programs. The goal is to put students on a direct pathway to employment and make the Community College of Rhode Island an engine of workforce development.
Click here to read Gina's plan to make college more affordable and accessible.
K-12 Education
A quality K-12 education system is the bedrock of Rhode Island’s future economic success. We need quality, flourishing schools that teach our students the skills they need to succeed in the 21st century. No one knows how to teach these skills to our children better than our state’s hard-working teachers. But right now, we spend too little time listening to our teachers, and we fail to give them the resources they need to do their jobs.
To make matters worse, our state’s school buildings are falling apart. The majority of them were built more than 50 years ago. Students are attending schools where roofs are collapsing and teachers are falling ill with respiratory problems. As governor, Gina will:
- Treat teachers as the professionals they are, by providing them with the resources and support they need to be successful, and most importantly, listen to their ideas and incorporate their feedback into educational priorities.
- Invest in extracurricular and enrichment opportunities, which are essential to a quality education.
- Rebuild crumbling schools and classrooms, and improve them with access to technology and personalized learning tools like tablets and laptops.
