![\"\"](\"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/student-affairs\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1605\/Matt-Fontes-1024x683.jpeg\")
KINGSTON, R.I. \u2013 March 27, 2026 \u2013 As a graduate student pursuing his Master of Public Administration in the University of Rhode Island\u2019s accelerated bachelor\u2019s to master\u2019s program, Matt Fontes hopes to one day impact public policy at the state level and effect positive change for the state\u2019s underrepresented populations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That wasn\u2019t always the plan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Long before he donned Keaney Blue, the 23-year-old Cranston, R.I., native was an undergrad at Rhode Island College studying computer science. A product of the COVID-19 era of canceled commencement ceremonies and increased online learning, Fontes graduated high school in 2021, but admittedly put little effort into finding the college that was right for him. He also hadn\u2019t found his \u201clane\u201d yet academically.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now, five years later, Fontes has shifted his focus from computer science to political science, developing a newfound love and appreciation for politics through his role as a graduate assistant at the university\u2019s Rhody Outpost basic needs pantry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cFor a long time, I didn’t know anything about politics,\u201d Fontes said, \u201cbut then COVID hit during the beginning of the second semester of my junior year of high school, and then I realized how politics literally affects every single part of your life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Fontes is closing in on finishing his master\u2019s degree by the fall of 2026. He began working for the Outpost in the spring of 2025 \u2013 the second semester of his senior year \u2013 as an intern through URI\u2019s John Hazen White Sr. Center for Ethics and Public Service, which collaborated with the URI government affairs and the president\u2019s office to develop the program to foster university engagement in public service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Fontes\u2019 main responsibility was serving as a liaison between the Outpost and student organizations. In April, he helped link the Student Action for Sustainability club with the Outpost as part of the group\u2019s Rhody Repurpose initiative encouraging students to donate their unwanted items during move-out week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When his internship ended and he began the online MPA program, Fontes landed a job as a direct service professional for a non-profit group home in Cranston, but returned to the Outpost in November to take on more of an administrative role in the absence of Barbara Sweeney, URI\u2019s coordinator of food security outreach, who underwent surgery in December and spent three months on medical leave.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI enjoyed it a lot,\u201d Fontes said. \u201cI got into this field of study because I wanted a job that didn\u2019t feel like a job. When I\u2019m working at the Outpost, I truly feel like I lose track of time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOne of the big reasons I decided to switch from computer science and transfer was because I was working jobs that I didn’t care about.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Fontes\u2019 passion for public service is rooted in family tradition. His father is a U.S. Air Force veteran and his aunt, Pamela Lauria, is a primary care nurse practitioner and R.I. state senator who represents District 32 (Bristol, Barrington, and East Providence).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Still, after graduating Cranston East High School, he wound up at RIC studying something entirely on the opposite end of the spectrum, a decision he soon regretted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI wanted a true college experience. URI provides that,\u201d Fontes said. \u201cWhen I was at RIC, my father and I used to come to URI football games, and that\u2019s when I began realizing I wasn\u2019t happy at RIC.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With his newfound passion for public policy, Fontes transferred to URI after one year at RIC and immediately began pursuing his political science degree. He earned a Heidi Allen Memorial Scholarship, awarded annually to select political science majors, and in 2024 interned at the State House, giving him an opportunity to practice policy writing \u2013 perhaps, he says, a preview of what he might want to do once he graduates the master\u2019s program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe best part is I still haven\u2019t found my lane,\u201d Fontes said. \u201cWorking at the group home isn\u2019t my \u2018forever\u2019 job. I\u2019ve stumbled into so much since I\u2019ve been here. It feels like everything has been falling into my lap. The group home has given me great experience learning how to interact with people in different ways, but I really enjoy being at the ground level \u2013 the grassroots work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMy MPA will give me a good lane to either go into government or non-profit work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sweeney, who returned to the Kingston campus in mid-March, is thankful for Fontes \u201cgraciously\u201d stepping up during her absence. The added responsibility gave Fontes a chance to learn more about the administrative side of things, including outreach to students, faculty, and staff for pantry donations and raising awareness of the Outpost\u2019s availability on campus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In addition to keeping students aware of the services the Outpost provides, Fontes said it\u2019s equally important to solicit donations to the Outpost outside of the usual busy seasons around Christmas and other holidays. Whatever essential items don\u2019t get donated, the Outpost will purchase; given that a large population of those who utilize the Outpost are graduate students, many of whom are international, there\u2019s also a greater need for items that aren\u2019t traditionally found in American retail stores.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
No matter what lane he picks, Fontes envisions a future helping others; it\u2019s a part of his journey he\u2019s proudly shared with URI and the Rhody Outpost. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhen you know what you’re studying is directly impacting your work, that feels good,\u201d Fontes said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
###<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Michael Parente, director of communications and marketing in the URI Division of Student Affairs, wrote this news release.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Matt Fontes, a student in URI’s accelerated bachelor\u2019s to master\u2019s program, has taken on a larger role this year with the basic needs food pantry, moving him closer to finding his career path beyond URI KINGSTON, R.I. \u2013 March 27, 2026 \u2013 As a graduate student pursuing his Master of Public Administration in the University of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5297,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[13,17],"class_list":["post-3795","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-news","tag-spring-2026"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/student-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3795","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/student-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/student-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/student-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5297"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/student-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3795"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/student-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3795\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3810,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/student-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3795\/revisions\/3810"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/student-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3795"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/student-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3795"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/student-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3795"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}