Newport Public Schools
Newport Public Schools

Good Tuesday morning, Newport!

Here’s our daily rundown of what’s happening out there today, plus all that you need to know; enjoy!

Weather Forecast

  • Today: Partly sunny, with a high near 65. East wind 5 to 11 mph.
  • Tonight: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 53. East wind around 8 mph.

Marine Forecast

  • Today: Variable winds less than 5 kt becoming E 5 to 10 kt in the morning. Partly sunny. Seas 1 ft or less.
  • Tonight: E wind around 7 kt. Mostly cloudy. Seas 1 ft or less.
  • The coastal water temperature is 50 degrees.

Sun, Moon & Tide

  • Sunrise at 5:27 am. Sunset at 7:55 pm. 14 hours & 28 minutes of sun.
  • High tide at 9:01 am & 9:13 p.m. Low tide at 2:36 am & 2:14 pm.
  • The lunar phase is a Full Moon.

🚨 You need to know

Newport’s School Committee is tackling student attendance issues at its upcoming meeting tonight (May 13) at Pell Elementary School. The meeting, set for 6:30 p.m. in the school cafeteria, will focus on absenteeism and tardiness as part of its agenda.

Committee members are also considering several action items, including contracts for tech upgrades and behavioral support services. They’ll vote on awarding a contract to OSHEAN for better fiber internet at Rogers High School and Pell Elementary, as well as purchasing a virtual cadaver table for anatomy studies.

The meeting includes a second look at policies on student residency and support for homeless students under the McKinney-Vento Act. There’s also an agreement up for approval with Newport Community School for behavior specialists at multiple schools and summer programs.

Other items on the table include renewing an agreement for Renaissance Star Assessment and approving a food service renewal with Chartwells Division, both for the 2025-2026 school year.

Updates on school building projects and regionalization efforts are also on the agenda.

You can catch the meeting live on the Newport Public Schools YouTube channel. There’s a quick pre-meeting at 6:15 p.m. for procedural discussions.

See the full agenda here.

Here’s what else you need to know

Portsmouth police are stepping up their efforts to combat drunk driving, with several arrests made during a recent weekend enforcement push. From May 9-11, officers patrolled the town and responded to calls, resulting in four DUI charges and one arrest for public drinking.

The League of Women Voters of Newport County is set to host Rhode Island Supreme Court Justice Melissa A. Long for a discussion on advancing civil rights in the state’s courts. The event, “Justice for All: Advancing Civil Rights in Rhode Island’s Courts,” is scheduled for May 20, 2025, at 5:30 p.m. at The JPT.

Thirteen homes sold across Newport County last week. Tyler Bernadyn has a look at What Sold.

Three Newport County students were among those honored at the Young Leader Awards ceremony at the Rhode Island State House on May 9.

Newport’s police force recently got a new four-legged member, and the public is invited to witness the official swearing-in ceremony on Wednesday.

📈 Yesterday’s most-read

The following were yesterday’s most-read What’sUpNewp articles.

📅 Upcoming events

Here is what’s happening this weekend in Newport.

Things To Do

Live Music & Entertainment

Newport County Public Meetings

Organizing an event? Submit it to What’sUpNewp’s event calendar.

Ryan Belmore is the owner and publisher of What's Up Newp. He took over the publication in 2012 and has grown it into a three-time Rhode Island Monthly Best Local News Blog (2018, 2019, 2020). He was named LION Publishers Member of the Year in 2020 and received the Dominique Award from the Arts & Cultural Society of Newport County the same year. He has been awarded grants for investigative and community journalism, and continues to coach and mentor new local news publications nationwide. Ryan...