Amazing Women Rhode Island

JENNIFER HAWKINS is the CEO of One Neighborhood Builders, a nonprofit community. development leader.  We discuss where affordable housing is being built in Rhode Island, mixed-income social housing, and how short-term rentals have impacted the housing stock for year-round renters. 

 Rosie The Riveter is the most iconic image of women working in the defense industry during WW II.  There are many skilled tradeswomen today.  ANITA BRUNO started  Rhode Island Women in The Trades in 2019. This non-profit organizes, educates, and trains women for employment in building trades for economic empowerment.

We are all getting older and all of us want to ‘age in place’.  In the next six years, over a  third of the population will be 55+. CAROLINE GANGJI, executive director of the  VILLAGE COMMON of RHODE ISLAND discusses what communities have already established a ‘village’ to age in place, and why this is the future.

HELENA BUONANNO FOULKES stormed onto the political scene in 2022 with a formidable Democratic Gubernatorial Campaign in Rhode Island. She discusses lessons learned from that campaign, her current work on public education with several municipalities, and …. wait it for it… her decision on running again for Governor in 2026. 

Athletic competition is a doorway to self-confidence and success. University of Rhode Island women’s basketball coach, TAMMI REISS, has been named Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year twice in her three years at URI.  She talks about coaching young women to be the best in the conference, excel in academics, and learn the game’s life lessons for future success.  

Homelessness and affordable housing are top-of-mind policy issues in Rhode Island. KAREN SANTILLI, CEO of Crossroads RI, discusses new projects for the unhoused, and what the state needs to do to mitigate the housing shortage. 

15% of RI high school students reported attempting suicide one or more times.  Dr. Daisy Bassen, a child psychiatrist and medical director of Thrive Behavioral Health, discusses mental health stressors, depression, and warning signs for teens and young adults.

Page Clausius Parks, executive director of RI KIDS COUNT,  discusses her challenges and goals for this statewide policy and advocacy organization that improves the health, education, and economic well-being of RI’s children.

KIM KALUNIAN, WPRI TV 12 news anchor at 4pm, a native Rhode Islander, discusses her career working with her husband in the same industry and in the same newsroom, and how she and Ted Nesi juggle parenting, childcare, and turning off the news at home.

KATE LIBERMAN, only the 2nd woman executive director of TRINITY REPERTORY Company, discusses her work in NY and Boston theater, her work with Curt Columbus, and Trinity’s role in promoting diversity and equity.

Aniece Germaine is the first black woman elected to the Cranston City Council. She shares her story of escaping life-threatening events in Haiti to come to the U.S where she learned English, went to college, ran for office, and is now serving her second term on the city council.    

Anna Cano Morales, Vice President for External Relations and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Rhode Island College, discusses the future of Rhode Island College, RIC as a Hispanic Serving Institution, and the importance of a secondary education in today’s marketplace.

Domestic violence is a public health and public safety issue. SHELLEY CORTESE, RI Dept. of Corrections oversees adult probation and parole, and LUCY RIOS from the RI Coalition Against Domestic Violence discuss their collaboration and how they’re solving the DV problem.  

Kelli Armstrong is the 8th president of Salve Regina University and the first who not a Sister of Mercy. She discusses higher education and why service to others is such a part of this school’s culture.  

Ellen Ford worked at People’s Credit Union for 37 years. She grew up in Newport and discusses rising through the ranks from an entry-level teller to the president/CEO for the last 17 years of her career.

Sally Lapides, CEO of Residential Properties is one of the state’s premier real estate companies with nine offices and a commercial division. She discusses the market, affordable housing, and tips for first-time home buyers in an ever-changing real estate market.

Emily Crowell, chief of staff to Providence Mayor Brett Smiley, is an effective, non-stop political operative in this state. Emily shares why she works so hard for this Mayor, her many tattoos (#39 for this 39th Mayor), and why she believes this Administration will do more for the creative capital.  

BARBARA SOKOLOV and Dr. JODI GLASS explain how Aldersbridge, an East Providence non-profit running health centers for older adults, is embarking on an innovative plan to build affordable housing for aging members of the LGBTQ community.  

MARCELA BETANCUR, director of the Latino Policy Institute at Roger Williams University, discusses equity, housing, education, and the economic contributions of the Hispanic community in the state.