The Rhode Island Federation of Teachers and Health Professionals (RIFTHP) is the Rhode Island state-level affiliate of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), a member of the AFL-CIO union federation. With 12,000 members, it is the largest union in the state representing predominantly public-school teachers as well as nurses and other health professionals, higher education workers, and other government employees. ^{1 2 3}

RIFTH advocates for increasing pay and for union members, increasing funding for Rhode Island’s Multi Language Learner program to deal with the influx of non-English speaking immigrants in Rhode Island schools, and restricting the number of charter schools in the state. ^{4 2 5}

History and Structure

The Rhode Island Federation of Teachers and Health Professionals was founded in 1949 when teachers from the Rhode Island cities of Warwick, North Providence, Pawtucket, Woonsocket, and Providence joined together to form a Rhode Island state affiliate of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT). Each group of teachers from these five locations formed their own unions and federated to become the Rhode Island Federation of Teachers. ¹

In the 1990s, the Rhode Island Federation of Teachers began to include nurses and healthcare practitioners as members. At that time, it changed its name to the “Rhode Island Federation of Teachers and Health Professionals.” As of February 2025, members of the organization include teachers, health professionals, faculty and staff in higher education, school personnel, and state and municipal employees. RIFTHP is an affiliate of both the American Federation of Teachers and the AFL-CIO. ^{6 2}

RIFTHP divides its local unions into five categories: elementary and secondary education, health professionals, higher education, private sector, and public employees. ³

RIFTHP is the largest union in the state of Rhode Island. The union federation reportedly has 12,000 members. ⁵

Activities

The Rhode Island Federation of Teachers and Health Professionals conducts strikes advocating for increased pay and benefits, analyzes how state legislation impacts its members, and provides professional development resources to its members. ^{1 7 8}

In 2025, RIFTHP advocated federal legislation making threats against school staff and superintendents a felony and opposed a state proposal to move surplus from the Employees Retirement System of Rhode Island into a rainy-day fund. Previously, RIFTHP supported policies such as calculating pensions based on the highest consecutive three years of earnings, extending the number of days retired teachers can work without impacting their pension receipts, raising the income ceiling for adjunct professors without reducing benefits, and increasing funding for the Multi Language Learner program. ^{4 2}

Professional development resources offered by RIFTHP include recommendations for instructional strategy, how to instruct beginning readers, how to instruct reading comprehension, how to manage antisocial behavior among students, and educational research. ⁸

Leadership

The president of the Rhode Island Federation of Teachers and Health Professionals is Maribeth Calabro. Calabro was named the president of RIFTHP in November 2024. Previously, she had been a union leader and teacher in the Providence, Rhode Island, public school system for nearly 32 years. ^{9 10}

Calabro has advocated for restricting the number of charter schools in Rhode Island, unionizing charter schools, and increasing funding for the state’s Multi Language Learner program to deal with the influx of non-English speaking immigrants in Rhode Island public schools. ⁵

Previously, the president of RIFTHP was Frank Flynn. In 2011 Flynn became the vice president of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT). He also chaired AFT’s legal defense fund and other leadership committees at AFT. ^{11 12}

1. “RIFTHP History.” RIFTHP. Accessed February 20, 2025. https://www.rifthp.org/content/rifthp-history.
2. “The Smith Hill Report.” RIFTP. June 10, 2024. Accessed February 20, 2025. https://www.rifthp.org/sites/rifthp.org/files/SHR%2024%2006.10.2024.pdf
3. “Locals.” RIFTHP. Accessed February 20, 2025. https://www.rifthp.org/content/locals
4. “The Smith Hill Report.” RIFTHP. February 10, 2025. Accessed February 20, 2025. https://www.rifthp.org/sites/rifthp.org/files/SHR6%202.10.2025%20sent%20version.pdf.
5. Mooney, Tom. “People to Watch 2025: Maribeth Calabro pilots the state’s largest labor union.” The Providence Journal. December 26, 2024. Accessed February 20, 2025. https://www.providencejournal.com/story/news/good-news/2024/12/26/rhode-island-federation-of-teachers-and-health-professionals-maribeth-calabro-2025-union/76702621007/.
6. ^[1] “RIFTHP History.” RIFTHP. Accessed February 20, 2025. https://www.rifthp.org/content/rifthp-history.
7. “2024 Smith Hill Report.” RIFTHP. Accessed February 20, 2025. https://www.rifthp.org/content/2024-smith-hill-report.
8. “Professional Development.” RIFTHP. Accessed February 20, 2025. https://www.rifthp.org/content/professional-issues.
9. “Our Team.” RIFTHP. Accessed February 20, 2025. https://www.rifthp.org/content/our-team.
10. “Maribeth Calabro (She/Her).” LinkedIn. Accessed February 20, 2025. https://www.linkedin.com/in/maribeth-calabro-02644551/
11. ^[1] “The Smith Hill Report.” RIFTP. June 10, 2024. Accessed February 20, 2025. https://www.rifthp.org/sites/rifthp.org/files/SHR%2024%2006.10.2024.pdf
12. “Francis F. Flynn.” American Federation of Teachers. Accessed February 20, 2025. https://www.aft.org/about/leadership/francis-j-flynn.