On May 17, 2023, RIPEC held “Building Our Future: Improving K-12 Education in Rhode Island,” a half-day forum dedicated to addressing some of the most critical issues facing our public education system today.

The forum featured a keynote address from Susan F. Lusi, Ph.D., President and CEO of Mass Insight Education & Research, as well as three panels covering:

• Teacher Workforce and Professional Devevelopment
  • Victor Mercurio, Ed.D., Associate Professor, Educational Leadership Doctoral Program, Johnson & Wales University (Moderator)
  • Danielle Dennis, Ph.D., Dean, Alan Shawn Feinstein College of Education and Professional Studies, University of Rhode Island
  • Jeanine Dingus-Eason, Ph.D., Dean, Feinstein School of Education and Human Development, Rhode Island College
  • Frank Flynn, President, Rhode Island Federation of Teachers and Health Professionals
  • John P. Papay, Ed.D., Associate Professor and Interim Director of the Annenberg Institute, Brown University  

• Education Funding
  • Paige Clausius-Parks, Executive Director, Rhode Island Kids Count (Moderator)
  • Christopher Blazejewski, Majority Leader, Rhode Island House of Representatives
  • Colleen Burns Jermain, Ed.D., Superintendent, Newport Public Schools
  • Ryan W. Pearson, Majority Leader, Rhode Island Senate
  • Kenneth K. Wong, Ph.D., Professor and Walter and Leonore Annenberg Chair for Education Policy, Brown University

• Innovation and Choice
  • Sarah Friedman, Co-Founder, The Learning Community (Moderator)
  • William Bryan, Senior Project Executive, Gilbane Building Company; Chair, Rhode Island Career and Technical Education Board of Trustees
  • Michaelle Larracuente, Director of Programs and Implementation, Highlander Institute
  • Ramona Santos Torres, Executive Director and Co-Founder, Parents Leading for Educational Equity

Also on the program was a welcoming address from Mim L. Runey, LP.D., Chancellor of Johnson & Wales University and Chair of the Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council, and opening remarks from Michael DiBiase, President and CEO of the Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council.

The forum’s lead sponsor and host was Johnson & Wales University. The forum’s supporting sponsors were AAA Northeast, Adler Pollock & Sheehan PC, Amica Insurance, Fidelity Investments, Hasbro, Hinckley Allen & Snyder LLP, Locke Lorde LLP, and Rhode Island Energy.