PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — Governor Dan McKee joined local education leaders to kick off Rhode Island’s Summer Learning Week, part of the Learn365 program.
McKee highlighted three summer STEM programs across the greater Providence area, as students worked with the North Providence Police Department and General Dynamics Electric Boat to bring STEM into classrooms.
“It’s an all-in effort that will get us to the goal that we’ve set,” McKee told ABC 6.
McKee said he had just been North Providence talking to a young lady who was working on some math problems, and had expressed that math was hard.
“Hard is okay, we need to work our way through that,” he continued.
The first stop on the trek through summer programs looked at students in North Providence, working with the police department on local traffic congestion.
The second stop had students building remotely operated underwater vehicles and the last stop had middle and elementary school students making “battle bots.”
“After the pandemic, we’re going to feel the ripple effects for a very long time,” said RIDE Commissioner Angélica Infante-Green.
“The more time that we have learning, kids are engaged, and it’s really hands on. So our kids are being exposed, learning, and they were excited about learning and that’s all we want for our kids, to be engaged,” she continued.
McKee also used this trip to officially declare this week, the third week in July, as Rhode Island Summer Learning Week.
“What this entire camp came to be is all because of these teachers, because without them it would not be so engaging and exciting for the kids,” said Program Coordinator for North Providence Summer Math Camp, Maria Branco.
Each of the programs are funded through mix of state, local, and federal funding.
The official designation of summer learning week, the hope is to expand programs like these moving forward.