RI workforce development professional endorses Rebecca Schiff's jobs and education platform

I am honored to write this letter of support for my friend and neighbor, Rebecca Schiff, who is running for the District 74 state representative seat. I have known Rebecca since she moved to my neighborhood in Jamestown and I have been consistently impressed with Rebecca’s kindness, intellect, integrity, and tenacit

Rebecca has been a confidant and a mentor to my family on educational issues, particularly when it pertains to the education of my 18-year-old daughter, who is a sophomore economics student at the University of Rhode Island. I have complete confidence in her vision to create better jobs and opportunities for Rhode Island’s young people by harnessing the power of new job training programs, apprenticeships and mentorships.

Rebecca’s classroom-to-careers program can offer a “feeder system” for talent that would provide students and recent grads with training and an opportunity to grow their careers with new, innovative companies and more established businesses. Rebecca has a comprehensive plan to retain our young talent that includes offering companies of all sizes tax credits in exchange for their participation in the program. I have 25 years in workforce development and am confident her plan will create jobs by creating a business environment friendly to small businesses.

This is the kind of innovative thinking that we need at the State House. Rebecca knows that it takes partnerships with education, business and government to get things done. We can’t just keep electing the same people and expect to get a different result.

As a lifelong Democrat, I have become increasingly frustrated with the status quo under the current Democratic leadership in Rhode Island. Taxes and spending have spiraled out of control with little regard for the next generations that will be stuck footing the bill. The corruption scandals that have become all too common betray the public trust and erode Rhode Islanders’ confidence in government. The state’s business climate is frigid. Jobs for young people and displaced workers are scarce.

As a moderate Republican, Rebecca represents a much needed change for the better – and some much-needed balance in the House – when it comes to cleaning up the state’s politics. The House District 74 race is about the voters electing someone who is not entrenched with the powers that be and offering new ideas instead of the same stale approach.

We need term limits and if Rebecca is elected she will propose and support term limit legislation. In the meantime, voters can impose their own term limits on our representatives. Rebecca Schiff would be an excellent rep and I am proud to support her candidacy. I urge the voters of Jamestown and Middletown to join me in voting for Rebecca Schiff on Nov. 8.

John Tantimonaco
Jamestown