A Senate panel will give first vetting Thursday to a nominee who could bring racial diversity to the state’s quasi-public bus agency.
Gov. Dan McKee on May 28 announced his nomination of Bernard Georges to serve on the Rhode Island Public Transportation Authority’s (RIPTA) board of directors, citing his professional experience and community ties leading New Bridges for Haitian Success, Inc, a nonprofit that assists Haitian immigrants.
Not mentioned in McKee’s statement, but crucial to transit advocates and participants, is the diversity Georges’ would bring to the nine-member board.
“The board is now mostly, if not entirely, white men,” RI Transit Riders Co-Chair Amy Glidden said in an interview Wednesday.
Georges declined to comment on his nomination when reached by phone Wednesday.
If approved by the full Senate chamber, Georges would replace former state Sen. Robert Kells, a Providence Democrat who has served on RIPTA’s board of directors since 2019. Kells’ term expired April 1, 2025 — along with four other members, according to the Rhode Island Secretary of State’s website.
His nomination will be considered by the Committee on Housing & Municipal Government Thursday afternoon. Board members typically serve a three-year term, but Georges’ term would expire April 2027. McKee’s office acknowledged an inquiry on the reason for the shorter term but did not send a response as of Wednesday evening.
Glidden commended the governor for bringing diversity to the board, which she said has been lacking since the term of Marcy Reyes, who is Puerto Rican, ended April 2024. Heather Schey, who is white, remains the only woman on the board.
Nearly 60% of RIPTA riders identified as people of color, according to a 2021 survey of 3,565 bus users.
State law calls for “diverse membership,” but does not address racial or gender diversity outright.
Even more important to Glidden than race was board representation of transit riders. State law mandates the board include at least one regular fixed-route rider and one person with a disability. Schey is a user of RIPTA’s paratransit service, while James Leach is a regular fixed-route rider.
Glidden also would have liked for the governor to give riders a say before making his nomination.
“There’s been no public input,” she said.
Georges immigrated to Rhode Island in 2000 at age 16 from Haiti, joining his father, who had already fled the island nation years earlier during the dictatorship of Jean-Claude “Baby Doc’’ Duvalier.
He graduated from Central High School in Providence in 2004 and received an associate’s degree in law enforcement at the Community College of Rhode Island, along with a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and a master’s degree in public administration from Roger Williams University.
In 2013, Georges founded New Bridges for Haitian Success, which supports immigrants through job training, case management, counseling, and obtaining health care. He also worked for the Rhode Island Department of Children, Youth & Families as a residential counselor, according to the governor’s office.
“Bernard is a dedicated community leader who has spent his career helping others find pathways to a successful future,” McKee said in a statement.
RIPTA CEO Christopher Durand welcomed Georges’ addition to the board.
“His commitment to equity, experience supporting underserved communities, and proven ability to build bridges between people and resources make him an excellent addition,” Durand said in a statement.
Georges’ nomination comes as RIPTA faces an estimated $32.6 million shortfall heading into the fiscal year beginning July 1. McKee did not offer any state funds for the cash-strapped bus agency in his recommended budget, citing a not-yet-completed study into RIPTA’s operations.
An efficiency study was required by Gov. Dan McKee and the General Assembly as a condition in last year’s state budget to plug the agency’s deficit. The report was initially due March 1.
As of May 30, Canadian-headquartered engineering consulting firm WSP is two-thirds finished with the overdue assessment, publishing a 20-page draft report on RIPTA’s transit operations. The initial report found that routes with limited connections to dense neighborhoods tend to have lower ridership due to their lower demand.
Legislators have proposed their own measures to close RIPTA’s deficit. That includes legislation that would put a $100 million transit bond on the 2026 ballot and upping the agency’s share of the gas tax.
Sen. Meghan Kallman, a Pawtucket Democrat who sits on the eight-member Senate Committee on Housing & Municipal Government, proposed adding a new tax on Uber and Lyft rides to fund mass transit.
“The board deserves to manage an agency that is properly funded,” Kallman said.
This story was originally published by the Rhode Island Current.
