Rhode Island public schools will offer free virtual summer classes to students K-12. The temporary SAIL program is designed to help students in the wake of the transition to online classes. “Some kids got behind with distance learning. There’s no denying that.” Governor Raimondo said. The program will offer a range of courses including reading, math, and art. “There’s a lot of fun classes,” Raimondo said.
The Governor’s Workforce Board is also unveiling a new COVID response program to assist young people looking for summer jobs. The state will help connect young people to COVID-related job opportunities and provide a stipend to those employed.
“We’re trying to do our best to help kids this summer study, have fun, go to camp, have a job, and stay engaged,” the governor said.
Governor Raimondo announced that $7.5 million of the state’s CARES Act funding will go toward helping finance summer camps. “We are hearing from a lot of camp operators that it’s more expensive to operate,” Raimondo said. In order to meet health guidelines, many camps will need more PPE, staffing, and cleaning. Camps will be allowed to reopen beginning June 29th.
“Overall it was a good, safe weekend in Rhode Island,” Governor Raimondo said. Beaches almost reached capacity but people were mindful of social distancing. Lincoln Woods and Colt State Park were temporarily closed after reaching capacity.
Raimondo said over 150 inspectors checked in on restaurants across the state this weekend. Inspectors found 90% of restaurants were in compliance with health guidelines but only 80% were able to produce a COVID-19 reopening plan upon request. Moving forward, there will be consequences for restaurants who cannot provide a plan, Raimondo said.
Worker testing is still lower than state expectations. The state administered only 250 of the planned-900 tests on close-contact workers last weekend. “Consider it your duty to Rhode Island,” Raimondo said. The state is hoping to test asymptomatic workers in order to measure the prevalence of the virus in certain industries.
Today marks the second week in phase 2 of Rhode Island’s reopening plan. The Department of Health reported 32 new cases and 6 deaths for today. Total case numbers and hospitalizations continue to decline.
