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Committee OKs Bill Adding Parent Input to School Evaluations

[CREDIT: Rob Borkowski] The Rhode Island State House is located at 82 Smith St. Providence.
[CREDIT: Rob Borkowski] The Rhode Island State House is located at 82 Smith St. Providence. A bill adding parent input to school evaluations passed the House Wednesday.
[CREDIT: Rob Borkowski] The Rhode Island State House is located at 82 Smith St. Providence. A bill adding parent input to school evaluations passed the House Wednesday.

STATE HOUSE — Wednesday, the House Education Committee passed legislation introduced by Rep. Joseph M. McNamara (D-Dist. 19, Warwick, Cranston) to include parent input in  school evaluations.

The measure now moves to the floor of the House of Representatives for consideration.

The bill (2025-H 5162) would incorporate the SurveyWorks school climate indicators for evaluating the performance of school districts and individual public schools.

SurveyWorks is Rhode Island’s Department of Education survey suite. The Rhode Island Department of Elementary and Secondary Education conducts these annual surveys of students, parents, teachers/staff, and administrators as part of a coordinated effort to improve schools.

“SurveyWorks is an important tool that lets the Department of Education know how parents, students and educators feel about the school by commenting on their personal experiences,” said Representative McNamara, who chairs the committee. “Last year, nearly 125,000 participated in the survey, giving feedback and making important suggestions about how to improve Rhode Island schools. Utilizing this information when evaluating local educational agencies affords the Department of Education a broad range of information beyond testing and other measurements of student performance.”

Students, educators and families are currently in the process of filling out this year’s surveys. The deadline to complete it is March 31. The survey can be found at ride.ri.gov.

 

Rob Borkowski
Author: Rob Borkowski

Rob has worked as reporter and editor for several publications, including The Kent County Daily Times and Coventry Courier, before working for Gatehouse in MA then moving home with Patch Media. Now he's publisher and editor of WarwickPost.com. Contact him at editor@warwickpost.com with tips, press releases, advertising inquiries, and concerns.

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