SOUTH KINGSTOWN, R.I. (AP) — A former Rhode Island high school basketball coach who authorities say for years asked male student-athletes to remove their clothes while alone with him so he could check their body fat pleaded not guilty to criminal charges Friday. Aaron Thomas, 55, the former successful boys’ coach at North Kingstown High School, was […]
Rhode Island
Posted inCity & Government
Energy-Saving Tree Program providing 1,000 free trees to Rhode Island residents
The Department of Environmental Management (DEM), along with the RI Tree Council, RI Nursery and Landscape Association, and the Arbor Day Foundation, is providing 1,000 free trees to Rhode Island residents this fall through the Energy-Saving Trees program. Registration opens Friday, August 26. Now in its 13th season, this popular program helps Rhode Islanders save energy and lower their utility bills by strategically planting trees […]
Posted inCity & Government
Rhode Island mayor proposes $10M reparations spending plan
Providence’s mayor proposed spending $10 million in federal coronavirus pandemic aid on financial literacy and homeownership, workforce training, small business development and other programs recently recommended by the city’s reparations commission. Mayor Jorge Elorza’s spending plan, released Thursday, also calls for using $250,000 in federal money to launch a legal defense fund for residents facing eviction, $400,000 […]
Posted inPolitics
Election 2022: Candidates sprint to the primary election finish line with endorsements, accusations, and suggestions
With the primary election less than three weeks away, candidates, mostly Democrats, are sprinting to the finish line. Competitive Democratic primaries are being hotly contested for governor, second Congressional district, lieutenant governor, and general treasurer. And lots of money is being spent on television ads, trying to convince you – the voters – of the […]
Posted inCOVID-19
Counties with the highest COVID-19 infection rates in Rhode Island
The vaccine deployment in December 2020 signaled a turning point in the COVID-19 pandemic. By the end of May 2021, 40% of the U.S. population was fully vaccinated. But as vaccination rates lagged over the summer, new surges of COVID-19 came, including Delta in the summer of 2021, and now the Omicron variant, which comprises […]
Posted inCOVID-19
WalletHub Study: Rhode Island is the 3rd Safest State during COVID-19
With around 67% of the population fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and new cases down a lot since the start of the year, WalletHub today released updated rankings for the Safest States During COVID-19. In order to find out the safest states during the COVID-19 pandemic, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across five key […]
Posted inCity & Government
Who gets student loan relief? Borrowers’ joy, and bitterness
By BIANCA VÁZQUEZ TONESS Associated Press For Nick Marcil, the cancellation of $10,000 of his student loans could mean at last moving out of his parents’ house. Marcil, 24, studied at a Pennsylvania state college, earned scholarships and worked jobs while pursuing degrees in education but still owed $18,000 before Wednesday’s action by the Biden administration to […]
Posted inNews
Where refugees in Rhode Island are arriving from
“Give me your tired, your poor / your huddled masses yearning to be free …” Such were the words of Emma Lazarus, written in 1883 and enshrined in American history in 1930, in the form of a bronze plaque affixed to the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty. The implication of these words still evokes […]
Posted inReal Estate
Bristol Ferry Lighthouse hits the market for $750,000
Mott & Chace Sotheby’s International Realty today announced that the Bristol Ferry Lighthouse is now on the market. Built in 1855, the waterfront property is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The home, located at 7 Old Ferry Road, is listed at $750,000 and presented by Kim Holland, Sales Associate, Mott & Chace Sotheby’s […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Brown U. acquires trove of Mumia Abu-Jamal’s prison papers
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Brown University has acquired a trove of records, writings and artwork from Mumia Abu-Jamal, a political activist and journalist who spent decades on death row for the shooting death of a Philadelphia police officer in the 1980s. The Ivy League university in Providence, Rhode Island, says the collection documents Abu-Jamal’s trial, prison and […]
Posted inCity & Government
Rhode Island reparations report suggests programs, not cash
By PHILIP MARCELO Associated Press A new report suggests ways Providence, Rhode Island, can atone for its extensive ties to the transatlantic slave trade and centuries of racism and discrimination by, among other things, establishing home repair funds, launching financial literacy programs and boosting aid to Black and Indigenous organizations. The report, issued Monday by the Providence Municipal […]
Posted inCity & Government
Block Island resort temporarily loses licenses after fights
NEW SHOREHAM, R.I. (AP) — Authorities on the Rhode Island tourist hotspot of Block Island have voted to suspend the liquor and entertainment licenses of a beachfront resort that was the site of a brawl during a crowded music festival earlier this month that was later followed by a fight on a ferry to the mainland. The […]
Posted inCity & Government
Drought disaster declared in Rhode Island; Worcester restricts outdoor irrigation
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Federal officials have declared a drought-related disaster in Rhode Island while New England’s second-largest city is restricting outdoor water use as the drought in the Northeast worsens. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack declared Monday all five of Rhode Island’s counties as “primary natural disaster areas” because of the ongoing drought. The […]
Posted inCity & Government
Study: 2022’s Most & Least Equitable School Districts in Rhode Island
With low-income school districts underfunded by around $6,700 per pupil, WalletHub today released its report on the Most and Least Equitable School Districts in Rhode Island. To find out where school funding is distributed most fairly, WalletHub says that it scored the equitability of each school district in Rhode Island based on two metrics: average household […]
Posted inCity & Government
Board of Elections encourages the use of Ballottrax to track status of submitted Primary Election mail ballots
CRANSTON, R.I. – The Rhode Island Board of Elections is encouraging voters who choose to cast their ballot via mail or secure dropbox for the September 13th primary election to utilize the Ballottrax tool (https://ballottrax.sos.ri.gov/voter/) to track the status of submitted mail ballots.
“Casting a ballot by mail or via a secure dropbox is a convenient option, and many voters want to make sure their ballot has been received, processed, and counted by the Board of Elections,” said Robert Rapoza, Executive Director of the Rhode Island Board of Elections. “That is why we are encouraging voters to utilize Ballottrax to monitor the status of their submitted mail ballots. Ballottrax is easy to sign up for by visiting ballottrax.sos.ri.gov/voter/. The tool tracks ballot envelopes, not votes, thus ensuring that your vote remains confidential through the entire ballot tracking process.”
Rhode Island voters only need to sign up for Ballotrax once and they will receive tracking status updates for all future elections in which they choose to vote by mail, unless they opt out.
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Posted inArts & Culture
Comic – Sour Grapes: Thunder
Here’s this week’s Sour Grapes, enjoy! Tim Jones is the creator, artist and writer of the widely popular, self-syndicated comic strip, “SOUR GRAPES”; a comic about “Aesop”, a miserable flying dog and his odd friends, all living in a problematic and troubled world. Sour Grapes is currently published in multiple newspapers in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, […]
Posted inNews
Gubernatorial hopeful Luis Daniel Munoz joins WUN for a live virtual video conversation, Tuesday at 3 pm
Luis Daniel Munoz, a progressive who is battling four other better-funded Democratic gubernatorial candidates, will share his message with WhatsUpNewp when he joins us on a 3 p.m. videocast on Tuesday. A technology consultant and self-described community organizer, Munoz was born in New York City and raised in Central Falls. This is his second campaign […]
Posted inFood & Drink
RI VegFest’s ‘RI VegtoberFest’returns to Trinity Beer Garden on September 17
RI VegFest, Rhode Island’s only fully vegan festival, today announced that it will host its annual “RI VegtoberFest” at Trinity Beer Garden, located at Biltmore Park in downtown Providence, on Saturday, September 17, 2022 (the rain date is September 18). “This fun one-day celebration of compassionate plant-based living is proudly sponsored by Bootstrap Compost and will feature sampling from […]
Posted inArts & Culture
‘Forbidden Broadway Greatest Hits’, hosted by SiriusXM’s Christine Pedi, coming to Theatre By The Sea
Theatre By The Sea (TBTS) owner and producer Bill Hanney today announced that they will welcome Gerard Alessandrini’s Forbidden Broadway Greatest Hits to Theatre By The Sea on August 29 for one show only. Rounding out the 2022 Monday Evening Concert Series is Gerard Alessandrini’s Forbidden Broadway Greatest Hits hosted by SiriusXM star and Forbidden Broadway legend Christine Pedi. From Annie to Phantom to Wicked, this fall-down funny, satirical roast of over 30 Broadway hits, features outrageous costumes, silly spoofs of the […]
Posted inCity & Government
Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) class to be held in Jamestown
The Jamestown Fire Department (JFD), a state training facility, will be holding a National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians (NREMT) Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT) course starting in September. This course is intended to train attendees on vital skills in pre-hospital care. The course will start in mid-September and last through late December. Sessions will be held on Monday and Wednesday nights and […]
Posted inCity & Government
If all the vehicles in the world were to convert to electric, would it be quieter?
By Erica D. Walker, Brown University Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to curiouskidsus@theconversation.com. If all of the vehicles in the world were to convert to electric, would it be quieter? – Joseph, age 10, Chatham, New Jersey […]
Posted inCity & Government
How gas prices have changed in Rhode Island in the last week
Oil and gas prices continued their decline this week with regular gas hitting $3.93 per gallon on Thursday, according to AAA. Crude is trading at roughly $91 per barrel. Gas prices have fallen every day for the last nine weeks and crude oil has fallen by 30% in roughly that same period. Prices could decline […]
Posted inCity & Government
Pro-Trump wins in blue states threaten GOP hopes in November
By SUSAN HAIGH Associated Press HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Republicans have found success in Democratic strongholds like Maryland and Massachusetts when they have fielded moderate candidates who could appeal to voters in both parties. With Democrats facing headwinds this year, Republicans had hoped that strategy could pay off yet again. But Republican voters have nominated […]
Posted inCity & Government
2 more Coast Guard cutters now call Rhode Island home
NEWPORT, R.I. (AP) — A pair of 270-foot (82.3-meter) U.S. Coast Guard vessels involved in search-and-rescue operations, military exercises and maritime law enforcement are now based in Rhode Island, authorities said Friday. The cutters Tahoma and Campbell, each with a crew of about 100, were welcomed to Naval Station Newport at a ceremony attended by […]
Posted inCity & Government
WUN-ON-ONE: A conversation with Democratic gubernatorial candidate Helena Buonanno Foulkes
Former CVS executive and gubernatorial candidate Helena Buonanno Foulkes joins What’sUpNewp for a videocast on Friday at 3:30 p.m. as we take a closer look at the Democrats who are vying for their party’s nomination in the Sept. 13 primary election. Foulkes has been outspoken on several issues, while touting her managerial experience in a steady stream of television […]