Raimondo plugs free tuition at Make it in Rhode Island

By Tessa Roy
Posted 2/23/17

By TESSA ROY Governor Gina Raimondo continued her promotion of her manufacturing and free tuition initiatives Tuesday night at the Make it in Rhode Island Summit, which was attended by Warwick Mayor Scott Avedisian and North Providence Mayor Charles

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Raimondo plugs free tuition at Make it in Rhode Island

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Governor Gina Raimondo continued her promotion of her manufacturing and free tuition initiatives Tuesday night at the Make it in Rhode Island Summit, which was attended by Warwick Mayor Scott Avedisian and North Providence Mayor Charles Lombardi.

The Summit convened parents, students and business owners in support of Raimondo’s initiatives at the University of Rhode Island Providence Campus. The school’s president, David M. Dooley, was the first to sing praises.

“The Rhode Island Promise scholarship proposed by Governor Raimondo is, I believe, a truly innovative program. It’s designed to accelerate the number of students who actually complete college, as opposed to start college, while at the same time significantly reducing the costs to students and their families,” he said. “I think those things really address the heart of the matter in regards to creating the highly educated workforce that we need in Rhode Island.”

Raimondo emphasized the needs of her programs by detailing an account she heard from a waitress at a restaurant; the waitress begged for the passage of Rhode Island’s Promise because she had not been able to afford to complete her time at Rhode Island College.

“The hardest part of college shouldn’t be paying for it,” Raimondo said.

The governor also cited a statistic that “blows her away” consistently – post-recession, the country has created 11.5 million jobs, but only 80,000 of those jobs were created for people with a high school degree or less, she said.

“People say, ‘Governor, we need a bold move to move our economy forward.’ This is it,” she said.

After the governor spoke, Michelle Terminesi, a parent who had written the governor a letter of support for RI’s Promise, Travis Escobar, president of Millennial Professional Group of Rhode Island, Geoff Grove of Pilgrim Screw, Chase Hogoboom, president of Goetz Composites shared why they supported the governor’s initiatives.

Escobar spoke from the perspective of a student experiencing college debt, saying Rhode Island’s Promise would be helpful in allowing recently graduated students to spend more money within Rhode Island’s economy rather than on huge loan payments, and also in ensuring a lesser burden of debt to future students.

“I don’t want my future children or the next generation to go through these financial burdens,” he said. “I won’t benefit from this proposal and my $35,000 in debt is not going to disappear. But I plan on staying in Rhode Island and one day having a family, and I want my kids to live in a state where they have the option of going to college for free.”

Avedisian, who is a member of a coalition of mayors for college affordability, continued to express support for Rhode Island’s Promise at the Summit.

“The big issue will be what kind of metrics are you going to use to say you have to have a GPA of this or higher in order to qualify,” he said. “But from being on the board at the foundation at CCRI for so long, a lot of the things that the governor is talking about are already happening. The ability to have kids in high school getting CCRI credit already, that’s already there. This is an opportunity to build on that.”

Avedisian was particularly taken with Terminesi’s story of sending her student to CCRI, as it touched on his point of CCRI being a “hidden gem” for many families like hers.

“That’s what’s allowing people do two years there, saving resources to be able to go elsewhere. It’s a real good process of focusing in on where things need to be,” he said.

Avedisian also commented on the car tax debate, saying that though he gets “nervous when people start talking about equalizing tax rates across the state,” he feels neither plan proposed is bad for the city.

“Both plans are good for the City of Warwick. Looking at that, we’re trying to see what’s the more equitable one, what’s fairer. I think the issue really is going to be how do you get equity there and fairness in that equation. I’m sure they’ll work that out as we get there, because I think that’s what everybody really wants to do.”

Comments

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  • richardcorrente

    I have a great idea!

    Since we started The Lottery for the sole benefit of improving our educational system, why don't we just take the money from there and give free education to everyone, at every R.I. College/University, for any program, forever!

    Is it because we were sold a bill of goods about The Lottery? Are we being sold another one today? Were we sold a bill of goods when we were told that the state 1% sales tax was "only temporary"? How about way back when, when we were told that the state income tax was also "temporary". "Free" education that costs the taxpayers over 33 million TO START, isn't free at all.

    There is only so much that we trusting taxpayers can tolerate, and I believe we've reached our limit. The R.I. Taxpayer can't afford the exorbitant cost of this "FREE" education.

    Happy 60 degrees everyone.

    Rick Corrente

    The Taxpayers Mayor

    Thursday, February 23, 2017 Report this

  • VoWarwick2017

    Sorry Governor but there is no such thing as FREE when the government is involved. To pay for this program you will be taking money from Tax Payers and giving it to these children.

    Just last year you were claiming that Rhode Island couldn't afford to pay for the repair and maintenance of the roads and bridges without taxing (tolling) drivers - anyone who believes that it will only be the trucks that are tolled are in for a big surprise - now you are saying we have the unallocated funds to pay for this program? Which is it? Or is it more likely that you will simply raise another tax on the poor fools that actually work for a living in this state.

    Thursday, February 23, 2017 Report this

  • Thecaptain

    "We taxpayers"???? May I remind you Rick that you have not paid property taxes, car taxes, and utility taxes in a very long time. Who is the "WE" you are referring to?

    Thursday, February 23, 2017 Report this

  • Thecaptain

    "We taxpayers"???? May I remind you Rick that you have not paid property taxes, car taxes, and utility taxes in a very long time. Who is the "WE" you are referring to?

    Thursday, February 23, 2017 Report this

  • RISchadenfreude

    If the Governor believes this is such a great idea, why wasn't it introduced BEFORE the last election and put on the State Referendum to let the taxpaying voters decide?

    No need to respond- it's a rhetorical question.

    Wednesday, March 1, 2017 Report this