During the past two decades, the number of newspaper reporters across America has dropped by 36,000 or 60%. Some 1,800 communities have lost newspapers. Thousands more — especially in rural areas and communities of color — have newsrooms so desolate that they don’t truly cover the town. This is a serious threat to communities around […]
Rhode Island
Posted inOpinion
Opinion: To slow climate change, teach climate literacy
In 2019, inspired by teenage Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, youth around the world took action to demand governments address climate change. While 2020 brought a pandemic that dominated the world’s attention, the urgency of our climate crisis has not abated at all. That this movement was led by students is significant. The majority of today’s […]
Posted inNews
Rhode Island Airport Corporation will host a job fair at Rhode Island T. F. Green International Airport on August 18
The Rhode Island Airport Corporation will hold an Airport Job Fair on Wednesday, August 18, 2021, from 12:00 pm to 6:00 pm at the Rhode Island T. F. Green International Airport, in the Mary Brennan Board Room, located on the departures level behind the Delta Airlines check-in counters. Parking will be validated for all attendees. Current openings […]
Posted inJobs
Free job and education fair to be held on August 17 in Westerly
Westerly Education Center will host its annual job and education fair on Tuesday, August 17 from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. at 23 Friendship Street, Westerly. The event is free for all. “For anyone who is ready to return to work or who is seeking a career change, this event provides the opportunity to connect with employers […]
Posted inJobs, News
Emergency Medical Technician class to be held in Jamestown
The Jamestown Fire Department (JFD) this week announced that it 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 on September 15th and last through December 18th. Sessions will […]
Posted inNews
Yawgoog Scout Reservation will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its new dining facilities on Saturday
Scouts at Camp Yawgoog will mark a milestone in the Camp’s 106th season by hosting a ribbon-cutting on Saturday, August 14th for the new Three Point Dining Hall. The new facility replaces Sharpe Lodge, where tens of thousands of Scouts have gathered since 1924. Camp alumni donated $95,000 in a special campaign timed with the dedication […]
Posted inCity & Government
Commission appointed to study CRMC reorganization
House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi today announced the members appointed to serve on a special House commission to study the Coastal Resources Management Council. Created by legislation (2021-H 6252) sponsored by Rep. Deborah Ruggiero (D-Dist. 74, Jamestown, Middletown) and approved by the House of Representatives on June 29, the 15-member commission is to comprehensively study and […]
Posted inNews
WUN-ON-ONE: A conversation with Shane Joseph Hopkins, author and Newport firefighter
Our author series continues with a videocast on Thursday, August 12 at 2:30 p.m. with Shane Joseph Hopkins, a Newport Firefighter who has written what he hopes is “Great American Novel.” Shane has been writing for years, and when left alone for a few weeks in a log cabin he built in the woods of […]
Posted inCOVID-19
RIDOH: Most fixed, state-run COVID-19 testing sites now requiring appointments
To make the COVID-19 testing process as streamlined and efficient as possible, most fixed, the Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH) announced today that State-run testing sites are now requiring appointments. Rhode Islanders can schedule a free test online at portal.ri.gov or by calling 401-222-8022. Insurance is accepted but not required. Making an appointment ahead of time reduces long […]
Posted inCity & Government, News
Shoreline access study commission appointed
House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi today announced the appointment of the members of a special legislative committee that will study the issue of public access to the shoreline under legislation sponsored by Rep. Terri Cortvriend and passed by the House in June. Under the resolution (2021-H 5469A) that created it, a press release from the […]
Posted inNews
Family Service of Rhode Island hosting its annual school supply drive
A new school year brings with it a renewed sense of hope, and, of course, that familiar first-day-of-school excitement. As students prepare to head back to the classroom after more than a year of challenges, Family Service of Rhode Island (FSRI) is once again hosting its annual school supply drive, from August 3rd through September 15th, to […]
Posted inNews
Gerry Goldstein: When lefties join hands for the right stuff
Chances are slim that I will ever walk on the moon, paint a masterful portrait, or break new ground in physics. But I do share a common trait with Neil Armstrong, Leonardo DaVinci, and Albert Einstein. They were all lefties, and we’re not talking politics here. I’m also in presidential company, since southpaws in the […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Colonial Jewish Burying Ground will not be open to the public on August 15 (Update)
Newport is home not only to the oldest surviving Jewish house of worship in the United States, Touro Synagogue (1763), but also to the country’s oldest surviving Jewish burying ground, established in 1677 to serve Newport’s early Hebrew congregation. Update: August 13 – This event has been canceled. Once a year, the gates to the Colonial […]
Posted inNews
DEM: $3 million in matching grants available to help communities, local groups protect open space
The Department of Environmental Management (DEM) today announced that $3 million in matching grants is available to help communities and local organizations protect valuable green space throughout Rhode Island. The grant round is now open, with a deadline of October 29, 2021. Funding provided through the 2016 Green Economy Bond and the 2018 Green Economy […]
Posted inCOVID-19
Governor McKee, RI Department of Health to host COVID-19 Update on Tuesday
Governor Dan McKee’s office today announced that Governor McKee, Lieutenant Governor Sabina Matos, Rhode Island Department of Health Director Nicole Alexander-Scott, M.D., M.P.H., and Executive Director of the COVID-19 Response Tom McCarthy will provide on Tuesday, August 10 at 2 pm an update on COVID-19, the Delta variant in Rhode Island, and the State’s continued […]
Posted inCity & Government
Governor McKee signs five bills into law that support women’s health and equity
Governor Dan McKee today ceremonially signed five bills into law that support women’s health and equity, according to his office. The first bill (2021-S 0270A, 2021 H 5261A) will ensure pay equity for all employees, regardless of gender or ethnicity. The second bill (2021-S 0003A, 2021-H 5763) will ban health insurers from using gender rating, a discriminatory practice of […]
Posted inArts & Culture
State Arts Council opens arts grant applications with an Oct. 1 deadline
The Rhode Island State Council on the Arts (RISCA) announced today that applications are now open for grants to nonprofit organizations and individual artists; projects for artists in education, schools and healthcare settings; folk art apprenticeships; and fellowships in folk arts and for individual artists. The deadline to complete an application is Oct. 1. To […]
Posted inThings To Do
Rhiannon Giddens & Francesco Turrisi, John Hiatt and Uprooted to headline the 23rd Rhythm & Roots Music, Dance and Food Festival
The long-awaited 23rd Rhythm & Roots Music, Dance and Food Festival will resume Sept. 3-5 at Ninigret Park with much-loved headliners, a jam band extravaganza, festival fan favorites and new voices that reflect the always-changing nature of roots music. The headliners – Rhiannon Giddens & Francesco Turrisi, John Hiatt and Uprooted – will join Richard Thompson, Trigger Hippy, […]
Posted inNews
National Grid preparing for Tropical Storm Elsa to hit New England on Friday
In a press release today, National Grid says that it is preparing for Tropical Storm Elsa to strike New England tomorrow morning and bring heavy rains and strong winds into the region for much of the day. National Grid says that the primary concerns associated with this storm are gusting winds expected to impact the […]
Posted inCity & Government
You can freshwater fish for free in Rhode Island this weekend
The Department of Environmental Management (DEM) recently announded that Saturday, May 1, and Sunday, May 2, are Free Fishing Days in Rhode Island. Rhode Islanders and visitors alike can fish in the state’s freshwaters on both days for all species of freshwater fish, without a fishing license or trout conservation stamp. All creel and possession […]
Posted inOpinion
Op-Ed: U.S. has pivotal opportunity to reclaim leadership on climate
U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) joined Sen. Brian Schatz (D-HI) and Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM) to push for American leadership on climate change, repairing the international agreements and commitments severed by the Trump administration over the past four years. Their op-ed outlines a plan to restore U.S. credibility on climate issues and get the country […]
Posted inNews
Project Support Ocean State highlighted during National Crime Victims’ Rights Week
When in-person therapy sessions for Rhode Island’s youngest victims of crime were no longer possible due to the COVID-19 pandemic last year, Family Service of Rhode Island’s (FSRI) Project Support Ocean State (Project SOS) created an innovative approach to provide virtual services. This year, that innovative effort is receiving national recognition during National Crime Victims’ […]
Posted inCity & Government
Rhode Island to lift most COVID-19 restrictions before Memorial Day Weekend
Governor Dan McKee and the Rhode Island Department of Health today announced during their weekly COVID-19 press briefing that the state plans to lift most guidance and restrictions on businesses by Friday, May 28. Updated – May 14 – Governor McKee today announced that the state will now lift most guidance and restrictions one week […]
Posted inNews
Governor McKee, DEM reflect on the progress Rhode Island has made in protecting Rhode Island’s natural resources
This week, as Rhode Island joins the world in marking the 51st anniversary of Earth Day, the Department of Environmental Management (DEM) is reflecting on the progress Rhode Island has made in protecting our state’s natural resources – from Narragansett Bay to local waters and green spaces to the air we breathe. DEM shared the following […]
Posted inCity & Government
Rep. Cortvriend’s bill that protects disabled parents’ rights moves forward in General Assembly
With a House vote in support last week, legislation sponsored by Rep. Terri Cortvriend to protect disabled parents’ rights is moving toward General Assembly passage this year. The legislation precludes the disability of a parent from serving as a basis for denial or restriction in matters involving a child’s welfare, foster care, family law, guardianship […]