Indiana's new superintendent of public instruction, Democrat Glenda Ritz, said she can make some policy changes for the state's schools without needing the approval of the Republican-controlled General Assembly and governor's office.
During Republican Tony Bennett’s tenure as superintendent of public instruction, Indiana became the poster child for school choice. But with Bennett’s surprising election loss to Democrat Glenda Ritz this month, the future of charter schools and private-school vouchers is murkier.
Politically boxed in at home, newly elected state schools chief Glenda Ritz is looking to Washington for some wiggle room to make changes to Indiana’s education rules.
Three new reform-minded IPS board members could help usher in sweeping changes to the school district. At the state level, however, school librarian Glenda Ritz denied Tony Bennett a second term as voters spurned his sweeping education overhaul.
In the shocker of Tuesday night’s election results, teachers unhappy with Republican Tony Bennett’s sweeping education reforms propelled dark-horse Democrat Glenda Ritz into the role of superintendent of public instruction.
About 60 percent of Indiana public schools are getting A or B letter grades for student progress, while about 7 percent received failing grades that could position them for state takeover if they don't improve.
The campaign to lead Indiana's education department is being watched as a referendum on school policies pushed by conservatives across the country.
Public schools around Indiana will learn their final grades next week under a ranking system using new rules that critics say are too complex for schools and parents to understand.
The accountability measures that have been introduced for individual Indiana schools should be extended to entire school districts, Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Bennett said Tuesday night in his State of Education speech.
Indiana school principals will begin evaluating all teachers this year under a 2011 law that ties teacher performance to merit pay. But the new responsibilities are sparking worries that administrators will be stretched too thin.
Scores released Tuesday by the state education department show that of the 500,000 students taking the standardized tests, 71 percent passed both the language arts and math sections. That's up one percentage point from last year.
The test will replace the ISTEP exam currently taken by Indiana students in grades 3 through 11 and end-of-course assessments taken at the end of algebra 1 and English 10 classes.
State Superintendent Tony Bennett said the new Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers, or PARCC, test in the 2014-2015 school year will be more difficult than the Indiana Statewide Testing for Educational Progress Plus exam.
Key parts of State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Bennett’s education reforms will be put under a miscroscope this summer by a special commission of state legislators.
Indiana lawmakers signed off on minor school changes at the close of the 2012 session while reining in broader efforts sought by state schools Superintendent Tony Bennett.
Parents across Indiana weary of paying sometimes-hefty fees for their children to attend full-day kindergarten classes could soon catch a break.
Indiana will take advantage of a federal waiver on provisions of the No Child Left Behind act to create better education for students, State School Superintendent Tony Bennett said.
Indiana's public school districts wouldn't be able to end school bus service for their students under a proposal advancing in the General Assembly after protests from parents in a suburban Indianapolis district who now face annual bills of more than $400 a child for rides to and from school.
Indiana's public schools would be required to teach cursive writing and be largely prohibited from starting their school years until late August under bill approved by a legislative committee.
A proposal that would make thousands of current private school students eligible for Indiana's school voucher program has been endorsed by a state legislative committee, although cost concerns might block its chances of advancing this year.
