Rhode Island schools roll out new policies for teacher shortages, student mental health
Rhode
Island schools roll out new policies for teacher shortages, student mental health As Rhode Island schools open their doors in the coming weeks, students will be walking into a new set of policies. The General Assembly passed several education-related laws in the last legislative session, including some that address longstanding problems.
For the third year running, retired teachers will be able to substitute all year long. The law, spearheaded by Deputy Majority Leader William O’Brien, aims to address ongoing teacher shortages. “We have an unprecedented teacher shortage in the state of Rhode Island,” O’Brien said. “If we didn’t have this, we would not have qualified teachers in the classroom.” As of August, there were several vacant teaching positions across Rhode Island: However, the number of vacancies are down from last year and each district expects all positions to be filled by the start of the year, including by long-term substitute teachers, some of whom are retired. “You talk to any superintendent around the state, and they will tell you they cannot function without this bill,” O’Brien said.
Another law that takes effect this school year focuses onmental health and behavioral issues. Each district must create a Student Safety and Behavioral Health Committee to review supports, set procedures, and identify resources for students.
NBC 10’s Tamara Sacharczyk reports that as Rhode Island schools open their doors in the coming weeks, students will be walking into a new set of policies. NBC 10’s Tamara Sacharczyk reports that as Rhode Island schools open their doors in the coming weeks, students will be walking into a new set of policies.
Mary Barden, the executive director of the National Education Association Rhode Island, or NEARI, said mental and behavioral health were top concerns when surveying educators last year. “It’s a place that educators can go and say, ‘I’m having problems in the classroom,’” Barden said. “They will be looking at their consistency across schools and districts in terms of addressing student behaviors and what types of programs will be enacted in the district to address student behaviors.” Barden said she believes this new law combined with the upcoming cell phone ban could boost mental health still reeling from the pandemic. “We have seen some improvements over the last two or three years, but we think that these two pieces, these two solutions, are really going to help students and help classroom teachers,” Barden said. While the cell phone ban doesn’t start this fall, districts must create policies to limit cell phone use next year. “They have a lot of flexibility, and they also have a year in order to hear from everyone and form of policy that best meets the needs of students in their district,” Barden said.
Some districts will use pouches to lock cell phones away at the start of the school day, while others will have students hand over their phones when they enter the classroom.
A ban on cell phones in Rhode Island schools will begin next year. (WJAR) The policies will vary by district and will be based on feedback from educators, students and parents. Barden saysdistricts that have already banned cell phoneshave reported success. “Students are looking each other in the eye.
They’re actually talking at lunch,” she said. “The social media component creates a lot of anxiety for students. When they don’t have access to cell phones during the school day, it minimizes that as well.” TheFreedom to Read Act also passed in the last legislative session, making Rhode Island the first state in the nation to prohibit the censorship of books in public libraries and public schools. “I think that libraries are for everybody,” Nicole P.
Dyszlewski of the Rhode Island Freedom to Read Coalition said. “Having access to the book you want to read about, the stories of people in history or people who are different than you is incredibly important.” Districts also got a boost in kindergarten to grade 12 funding. An additional $16.5 million in the funding formula aims to enhance resources for students and teachers, strengthen services, and support fair wages.
While organizations like NEARI considered this past legislative session a success for education, they’re already looking ahead to when lawmakers reconvene in 2026. “I think we will continue to look at the student behavioral and mental health issues,” Barden said. “
Certainly, we would like to see more school social workers and more school counselors.”