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Coventry approves opioid-settlement funds to sustain two school-based student assistant counselors
Summary
The Town Council approved using opioid settlement dollars to fund two Rhode Island Student Assistance Program counselors who provide school-based substance use prevention, intervention and family support; council directed staff to execute an MOU with the school department.
The Coventry Town Council voted 5–0 to allocate $60,000 from Coventry’s opioid settlement funds to sustain two school-based student assistant counselors for the 2025–26 year.
Superintendent Cowher and Director Robillard told the council the program currently supplies two counselors — roles historically focused on substance abuse prevention and early intervention — through the Rhode Island Student Assistance Program. The counselors are not district payroll employees; the school department contracts with the statewide program and the two positions cost $60,000 total (the program historically covered half of each counselor's salary and the district covered the other half).
Cowher said the counselors provide prevention education, early identification and referrals, and family support across the district. “We service over 4,000 students,” Cowher told the council, arguing that school-based services fit the settlement’s forward-looking abatement goals by preventing future opioid harms.
Director Robillard endorsed the proposal and Solicitor Angel advised that, because the school department is an autonomous unit, the town should execute a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) specifying allowable uses before releasing settlement funds. Town Manager Perillo was present during the discussion and councilors asked staff to draft the necessary MOU and resolution language to memorialize the arrangement.
Council action: Councilman Brown moved and Councilman Capaldi seconded a motion to fund the $60,000 request from opioid-settlement funds for the 2025–26 year. The motion carried on a roll call vote of 5–0. Council members said the funding is intended as targeted, time-limited abatement spending; staff said they would return if future allocations were necessary.
