Education Commissioner’s First Day:
Family Service of RI Walking School Bus

Angélica Infante-Green starts new job Monday
walking with kids at Kizirian Elementary

“Magic in the classroom starts with students who are in school each day, ready and eager to learn. When I learned about the Walking School Bus and the work they’re doing to improve attendance and increase engagement in school communities, I was excited to see it firsthand,” said Angélica Infante-Green, Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education.

“I couldn’t think of a better way to start my tenure here than getting out into the community, meeting students, families, and the Rhode Islanders who care deeply about education in our state,” she said.

Family Service of Rhode Island CEO Margaret Holland McDuff will be accompanying the Commissioner Monday. “We are honored that the Commissioner is starting her new job by seeing firsthand the Walking School Bus, which is part of Family Service of Rhode Island’s AmeriCorps program ‘Attendance Improvement Matters.’”

She noted that Attendance Improvement Matters (AIM) also includes “Check and Connect,” a school-wide intervention to enhance student engagement through relationship building, problem solving, capacity building, and persistence. The evidence-based intervention was designed by the Institute on Community Integration at the University of Minnesota.

“For success in academics, attendance is key and the Walking School Bus is a proven intervention helping students who may face attendance obstacles such as parental health and work schedules. Once in school, children need to be engaged.  That is why this school year we introduced ‘Check and Connect,’ which is being implemented statewide in Iowa and several other states.”

Family Service of Rhode Island pioneered the Walking School Bus in Rhode Island in 2012 at Providence’s Fogarty Elementary School in the South Providence neighborhood, where it continues to operate as part of the Family Service of Rhode Island AIM program at the school.

Family Service of Rhode Island’s Walking School Bus mobilizes trained volunteer mentors to meet children at their homes and walk with them to school along designated routes – like a real school bus – ensuring children arrive safely, on-time and ready to learn.  In addition, Family Service of Rhode Island often provides coats and shoes for children in need, as well as water and snacks for children who may have not eaten.  The Walking School Bus staff provide emotional support for the children, listening to them share stories about what is happening in their lives and their fears and joys as they approach the school day.