Shooting outside Deaf School

Three were people were shot in front of the Rhode Island School for the Deaf yesterday afternoon. One of them has died while another was shot in the leg and the third was shot in the abdomen. Police say none of the victims were students. Five people were in an SUV when the shots rang out. A man who was not hit drove the others to the hospital. Here is a video report from WPRI-TV or read the story here.

Baseball team to honor Deaf Fans

A minor league baseball team is hosting a Deaf Awareness Night next month. This will be the third time the Pawtucket Red Sox have honored deaf fans of the Rhode Island team. The team will wear jerseys with their name spelled out on June 7. Gallaudet baseball coach, and former major leaguer, Curtis Pride, will take part in the festivities. WPRI-TV has a video report below or you can read the story here.

Some hospital services for the deaf discontinued in RI

The Rhode Island Commission on the Deaf and Hard of Hearing plans to discontinue some of its emergency after-hours interpreter referral service for hospital emergencies starting this summer. Read the full story in the Providence Journal here.

City to pay for no Terp

A city in Rhode Island will pay $25,000 in damages and legal fees to a deaf man for failing to provide him with an interpreter during his arrest and night in jail. David Alves was arrested when police mistook a sign language gesture for an obscene gesture. Read the full story from Associated Press here.

Arrested for Obscene Sign

A Rhode Island man who attends Gallaudet University is suing the Woonsocket Police Department. David Alves was arrested for a misinterpreted sign language gesture--and held overnight. The police department refused his request for an interpreter. WJAR-TV has a video report.

Review of Tribes in RI

Tribes, a show that features a deaf actor in a lead role "falls short," according to a revew in Rhode Island's Providence Journal. Actor Joseph Ausanio was brought in from New York to play the deaf sibling in the Theatre 82 production. Reviewer Channing Gray says, "The point of the play often gets obscured by family stuff and (the writer's) inability to really bring focus to her script." Read the full review here. Tribes is playing at Theater 82 in Cranston and you can purchase tickets here.

Arrest in NY murder

A man is in police custody for killing a former Rhode Island School for the Deaf. Her body was found inside a 55-gallon drum at a Harlem apartment. Bismark Lithgow of Manhattan is charged with killing 19-year-old Francis Angelica Alfonso Pellerano. The deaf woman suffered multiple stab wounds to the body. They had apparently been dating after meting on the internet, but she planned to leave him to move to the Dominican Republic.

Murder in New York City

The body of a student from the Rhode Island School for the Deaf who left just months ago has been found inside a 55-gallon drum at a Harlem apartment. Watch a video report from WJAR-TV below on DeafNewsToday.com or read the story here.

News, Weather and Classifieds for Southern New England

Amber's senior project brings her dream closer

For one Rhode Island girl, fulfilling her dreams will mean breaking barriers. WPRI-TV has a video report about her goals.

Deaf student breaks barriers

Search for restoring stability after state takeover at deaf school

A look at what the new leader of Rhode Island's School for the Deaf is doing to restore its battered reputation here.

School Vandalized

Police caught several teens and pre-teens vandalizing busses at the Rhode Island School for the Deaf over the weekend. They caused thousands of dollars in damages while students and parents were attending a basketball tournament Saturday. The kids may have been responsible for damage to vehicles in the parking lot on previous weekend as well. Police aren't saying whether the vandals are students at the school, but officials are now re-thinking plans it had for a garage that were shelved.

Principal Forced to Take Paid Leave

Lori Dunsmore will not be working at the Rhode Island School for the Deaf again even though there is only a couple of weeks left in the school year. Although Dunsmore is being removed from her position by trustees, she will still draw her $116,000 salary. Dunsmore, who is deaf herself, was in her 4th year at the school, which was taken over by the state Board of Regents for poor performance two years ago. Dunsmore had already made it public that she would not ask for her contract to be renewed. It expires at the end of the month.

School Director Stepping Down

The head of Rhode Island's School for the Deaf is quitting. Lori Dunsmore took a 90 day leave of absence during the fall and returned to work this month. She wouldn't say why she is leaving, only that her last day with be June 30th. Dunsmore came to the school in 2007 as its 2nd deaf leader and had a contentious relationship with the faculty over changed designed to raise test scores. The school's Board of Trustees will get the search started for a new director.

School Leader Disappears

The director of Rhode Island's School for the Deaf is gone and school officials don't know when she'll come back and won't say why she is gone. Lori Dunsmore has taken an indefinite leave of absence from her post. She took over three years ago as only the second deaf person to lead the school in it's 134-year-old history. The assistant director and a teacher had recently left despite the school moving its dwindling enrollment into a new $31 million facility.

New State Deaf School Opens

Deleware's governor attended a ribbon cutting ceremony for the new Rhode Island School for the Deaf. Construction began two years ago on the new facility. The 23 classrooms will house students from preschool through 12th grade. attend the school which now has 23 classrooms. There are two science labs and a newly renovated gymnasium.

Give School Back to Board

The Rhode Island education commissioner plans to recommend that the Rhode Island School for the Deaf be given back to the Board of Trustees. Last year, she asked the state Board of Regents to let the state Department of Education take over because of concerns over academic concerns. But now she believes the trustees have been working productively. The Regents will consider the request at their next meeting.

Teachers May Be Reassgned

State education officials say teachers at Rhode Island School for the Deaf will not necessary be out of a job at the end of a school year. They are looking at reassigning the teachers. All 35 were recently given layoff notices for lacking certification in the subject areas in which they are teaching.

Deaf School Teacher Layoffs

WPRI-TV in Providence reports on layoffs planned at the Rhode Island school. No captions though you can read the story here.

Faculty on Notice

The entire faculty of the Rhode Island School for the Deaf will be laid off at the end of the school year if they do not meet new requirements for teaching at the facility. The staff of 35 teachers have just been notified they must meet the professional qualifications outlined in the federal No Child Left Behind Act that insists teachers must have expertise in the content areas in which they teach. Until now, the school has only required certification related to teaching the deaf and hard of hearing.

State Takes Over School

The state is taking over the Rhode Island School for the Deaf despite complaints from the school's board of trustees. Citing poor test scores, State Education Commissioner Deborah Gist says the facility is not doing its job educating the 80 students who attend school. Trustee Chairman Travis Zellner objects, suggesting the takeover may cut the deaf community out of the school's governance.