Senate approves Gallo bill establishing a maximum class size of 20 students for kindergarten through grade two

STATE HOUSE — The Senate today passed legislation introduced by Sen. Hanna M. Gallo (D-Dist. 27, Cranston, West Warwick) that would set a maximum class size for public school kindergartens through grade two.

The legislation (2020-S 2179) would mandate that public school classroom size be limited to 20 students for kindergarten through the second grade.

“Reducing class size is a proven strategy for improving student achievement,” said Senator Gallo, who chairs the Senate Committee on Education, “Research has also shown that smaller class sizes are effective in closing racially or socioeconomically based achievement gaps. This is especially true in the early grades, where small classes allow teachers to spend more time working with individual students, giving them the skills they need that will follow them through their academic careers.”

Exceptions would be made for emergencies and temporary situations not to exceed three days, and for mid-year enrollments when it would be impractical to assign the student any class but an existing class of maximum size.

The measure now moves to the House of Representatives, where similar legislation (2020-H 7050) has been introduced by Rep. Christopher T. Millea (D-Dist. 16, Cranston).

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