BANNISTER AWARDS 2026
Honoring
leaders who advance equity and promote diversity across Rhode Island.
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EDITED BY LAUREN CLEM WITH CONTRIBUTIONS BY JULIA COTE, KAITLYN MURRAY AND LYNSIE OLIVIER PHOTOGRAPHY BY JONATHAN PITTS-WILEY
HRISTIANA CARTEAUX BANNISTER KNEW BETTER THAN ANYONE how to draw on her background to empower her work. A hair doctress and entrepreneur born to Black and Indigenous parents in North Kingstown in 1819, she built her business and wealth and reinvested in her community. Alongside her painter husband, Edward Mitchell Bannister, Christiana participated in the Underground Railroad, advocated for Black military veterans and founded a home for elderly women of color. Her legacy lives on in the community institutions that share her values today.
The winners of this year’ s Christiana Carteaux Bannister Awards, like their namesake, have drawn from their diverse life experiences to work toward a Rhode Island that is better for all. From the state’ s board rooms to its prisons, from street patrols to academic lecture halls, this year’ s recipients demonstrate that it takes individuals from every background combining their skills and perspectives to build a more equitable Rhode Island. Now in their sixth year presented by Rhode Island Monthly and the Rhode Island Foundation, these awards continue to recognize the good accomplished across the state. In memory of a woman who held equity at the forefront of everything she did, we proudly present the winners of this year’ s Bannister Awards.
JUDGES: Anna Cano Morales, vice president of equity and inclusion, Rhode Island Foundation Jocelyn Foye, executive director, The Womxn Project Markeisha Miner, vice president for community, equity and diversity, University of Rhode Island
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