Barrington Public Schools and the municipal government received nearly $100,000 in grant money from the state recently, as part of the "Take It Outside" program.

Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo and RI Commerce announced this week that they had awarded more than $3 million to help businesses, school departments and other organizations to encourage outdoor operations "in an effort to reduce the transmission rate of COVID-19."

Barrington Public Schools received $55,000 through the program. The money is being used to help teachers conduct lessons and activities outdoors.

The Town of Barrington received $30,000. That money will be used to purchase outdoor equipment, such as heat lamps, tents and tables, for local businesses that are planning to expand their outdoor capacity.

Due to the high interest and creative proposals, Governor Raimondo announced at her press conference on Sept. 30 that the total Take It Outside grant budget will be increased from $1 million to $5 million.

Rhode Island Commerce Secretary Stefan Pryor said it was important that the state continues to help businesses extend the outdoor season and continue to reduce the rate of transmission.

""We were encouraged by applicants' creativity in proposing so many clever and practical ways to help businesses overcome COVID- and climate-related challenges. We thank all of the organizations that applied and are finding ways to take it outside and keep commerce going," he said.

The grant winners were selected following an RFP process in which RI Commerce received 85 applications requesting a total of $5.7 million in grant funding. In addition to the grants awarded, some intermediary organizations were awarded funds with increased flexibility to meet the unique needs of the business communities.

Other Take It Outside initiatives include making state-owned land available for fitness classes, outdoor meetings, recreational activities, and equipping outdoor office spaces with WiFi internet.