VIDEO: Hispanic Leaders Confront Elorza Over Schools - Suggest He Resign at Prov School Meeting

VIDEO: Hispanic Leaders Confront Elorza Over Schools - Suggest He Resign at Prov School Meeting

At the end of Tuesday night’s community “conversation” about Providence public schools, Jorge Elorza was confronted by State Senator Ana Quezada who stepped up, pointed in his face, and said, “You have had five years. You are responsible for this mess.”

Elorza seemed caught off guard by Quezada’s verbal attack and immediately raised his voice. “This is not the time. This is not the moment,” said Elorza, who recently returned from Hawaii where he traveled to a Mayors' conference just two days after the release of the report conducted by Johns Hopkins University deeming Providence schools among the worst in the United States.

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Quezada did not back down. “You act like you have nothing to do with it. Cut it out," she said.

Elorza scurried away from Quezada.

The community meeting was the sixth of the eight community "conversations" being hosted by Rhode Island’s new Commissioner of Education Angélica Infante-Green.

Pichardo Asks If Elorza Has Thought of Resigning

Just a few minutes earlier, former State Senator Juan Pichardo in a statement during the comment period said, “Mayor...you came up short. Mayor, have you thought of resigning?”

“You must have struggled with that...I am sure it is hard to sit there and hear how things are coming undone,” said Pichardo.

“Are you prepared to step aside?” asked Pichardo.

“Finally after many years involved I strongly believe that this is the time that the state of Rhode Island should take over PPS [Providence Public Schools]. Report after report. Enough is enough,” said Pichardo.

The backdrop for the latest “Conversation” with Providence residents was Asa Messer Elementary School on Westminster Street -- where more than 80 percent of the school’s students failed to “meet expectations” or only “partially met expectations” on both English Language Arts and Math. The school is typical of the failure of Providence’s School system.

SEE THE FULL MEETING VIDEO BELOW