Governance & Policies

The mission of the Rhode Island Department of Education is threefold: 

1. To lead and support districts, schools, and communities through a unified, strategic direction for the state. 
2. To use policies, advocacy, and governance structures to create an environment that advances opportunities for all students.
3. To maintain collaboration and efficiency in the department that enables innovation, agility, and continuous learning.

The mission of the Office of the Postsecondary Commissioner is to ensure, promote, and expand postsecondary attainment among all Rhode Islanders by providing an effective system of postsecondary education and workforce training that is high quality, equitable, accessible, affordable, and aligned to pre-kindergarten-12 education and the economy.

The Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training provides workforce development, workforce security, and workforce protection to the state’s workers, employers and citizens, offering employment services, educational services and economic opportunity to both individuals and employers. DLT protects the workforce by enforcing labor laws, prevailing wage rates, and workplace health and safety standards. The department also provides temporary income support to unemployed and temporarily disabled workers. 

The mission of the Rhode Island Department of Children, Youth & Families is to partner with families and communities to raise safe and healthy children and youth in a caring environment and to engage respectfully and effectively with people of all races, ethnicities, cultures, classes, genders, sexual orientations, and faiths in a manner that recognizes, affirms, and values the worth of all individuals, families, tribes, and communities, and protects and preserves the dignity of each. 

 The University of Rhode Island is the state’s flagship land- and sea-grant research institution, with a commitment to urban initiatives. A student-centered research institution, URI actively partners with other organizations globally and locally to advance knowledge and to develop informed residents and leaders. URI is committed to high-quality education, community engagement, and solving the world’s most important challenges. Situated on the traditional land and territories of the Narragansett Nation and the Niantic People, URI strives to create a diverse and inclusive environment for researchers, teachers, learners, and community members.