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Indy mayor asks Indiana for control of 4 schools

Associated Press
January 31, 2013
Keywords
Department of Education, Education & Workforce Development, Education reform, K-12
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The mayor of Indianapolis is asking the Indiana State Board of Education to give him control of four former city schools taken over by the state because of poor performance.

Mayor Greg Ballard announced that if the state board approves his petition at its Feb. 6 meeting, it would transfer to his office oversight of the private turnaround operators at Arlington, Howe and Manual high schools and Donnan Middle School. Transfer would occur at the end of the current academic year.

Ballard says Indiana School Superintendent Glenda Ritz supports the move, as do the private operators and the Indianapolis Public Schools.

He says day-to-day operations and academic decisions would remain in the hands of the school operators.

The state took over the academically troubled schools last year.

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  • Oh lord...
    MarshallFebruary 1, 2013 8:56 AM
    ... Bring on the loony conspiracy theorists! I think this move makes sense... These are city schools and the mayor of this city would naturally have a more vested interest in the performance of these institutions than an outside collective.
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  • Uh seriously?
    Wilbur ShooterflyFebruary 1, 2013 6:53 AM
    We're talking about the Mayor that apparently gives his grafter buddies contracts, ACS - parking meter contract, $6.5 million to a developer for a Broad Ripple Parking Garage that taxpayers have no ownership in, guarantees 100s of millions of dollars of loan guarantees to CityWay, and now trying to force Marion County taxpayers to pay more tax dollars for an unneeded rail system! This is the same Mayor that hired Frank Straub who basically bankrupted Public Safety, increaed violent crime and has failed to hire more officers, cannot keep the downtown area safe and HAS NOT maintained basic road and sidewalk maintenance needs. So he wants his hand on these schools for no other reason than to get contracts to his buddies? He has no skill set or ability to make them better and will not. He will perform at a D- or F level just as he has with everything else. And why should taxpayers in the suburbs have their tax dollars used for Jason Kloth and his bloated staff (just like Frank Straub) oversee Center Township Schools when we do not get adequate Police protection and the CCC cannot balance the budget without cutting services?
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