IPS, charter schools discuss common enrollment process

Indianapolis Public Schools Superintendent Lewis Ferebee said he’s had “very preliminary” conversations with city officials about creating a common enrollment process to be shared by IPS and Mayor Greg Ballard’s portfolio of charter schools.

According to Chalkbeat Indiana, Ferebee said sharing enrollment would allow district and charter schools to more efficiently plan their staffing by reducing unknowns about how many children might enroll. It would also be easier for parents who are trying to decide whether to send their children to IPS or a charter.

“Enrollment needs to be very user-friendly and I don’t think it’s very easy for parents to understand in terms of all the different offerings available to them,” Ferebee said. “The better connected we are, the better the community will benefit from what we have to offer.”

Common enrollment systems that include both traditional public schools and charter schools have been used in Denver; New Orleans; Newark, New Jersey; and Washington, D.C., noted a study commissioned by Teach Plus, a not-for-profit that trains teachers to be leaders in their schools, districts and states.

“We want to do everything we can to make sure that parents have access to choices, both within the district, and for me personally, outside of the district as well,” said Teach Plus’ Indianapolis director Caitlin Hannon, also an IPS board member.•