Newport, Middletown Educator Honored With RI Foundation Black History Month Award

NEWPORT, RI — The Rhode Island Foundation honored Jo Eva Gaines of Newport with its 2026 Black History Month Award in recognition of her role as a trailblazer for Black educators and students.

“Jo Eva Gaines is a pioneering figure in the world of public education. At a time when there were few Black educators, she was a role model and someone who opened doors for generations to come after her,” Foundation President and CEO David N. Cicilline said in a media release.

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In addition to serving as a classroom teacher and as Director of Guidance for Middletown Public Schools, Gaines was a member of the Newport School Committee and the R.I. Association of School Committees and serves on the R.I. Board of Education.

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“I am so honored to have been chosen to receive this award. I have always been a promoter of collaboration," Gaines said in the release.

"If I have been successful, collaboration is the key," Gaines said. "No one can accomplish anything worthwhile alone. Someone else has to share your belief and commitment. I have done nothing alone."

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In the community, Gaines is an active member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, the Women’s Newport League and St. Joseph’s Catholic Church and an Alumnae member of Links Inc., according to the release.

In addition, she served the Board of Directors of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center, the R.I. Commission on Women, Big Sisters R.I., several advisory boards for education evaluation and funding and the R.I. School Building Task Force led by U.S. Rep. and former General Treasurer Seth Magaziner.

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Her honors and awards include the NAACP Outstanding Educator Award, the R.I. Association of School Committee’s Howard Kay Award for Outstanding School Committee Service and the R.I. School Superintendents’ Association’s Paul Crowley Award.

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