Education and Workforce Development

in Rhode Island and served for several years as chairwoman of the Senate Committee on Education. She has been instrumental in numerous education initiatives, including landmark legislation establishing an equitable, predictable, and transparent formula for funding education in Rhode Island. She led the charge for funding of full-day kindergarten statewide, which was enacted in 2015, and has been a leading advocate for universal prekindergarten programming. She was also the Senate sponsor of a law making civics proficiency a requirement for Rhode Island public high school graduates. In addition, she has been instrumental in bills to cut government red tape to allow businesses to operate more efficiently, thereby enabling them to grow their workforces. She has been active in efforts to improve workforce development programs so all Rhode Islanders have access to quality, good-paying jobs. Sen. Gallo was appointed as the chair of the CSG East Education and Workforce Development Committee in 2023. She and her husband, Russell, have two daughters, Julie and Laura.