Three charters want to occupy closing IPS schools that district hopes to keep
The six planned school closures follow the IPS board’s vote to adopt the Rebuilding Stronger plan last week.
K-12
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Marian University teams with national player to launch preparatory school
Called Marian University Preparatory School, or MU Prep, the school initially will be open to Indiana students entering grades 6-9 in the 2022-23 academic year.
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College football title game is also helping Indiana educators, students
When the College Football Playoff National Championship visits a new city, the game’s philanthropic arm, the College Football Playoff Foundation, makes a legacy investment in local teachers.
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Key departures likely mean new strategy for Strada Education Network
The two highest-paid executives departed the powerful education not-for-profit in recent months, an indication the Indianapolis-based organization is rethinking aspects of its strategy.
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Q&A: IPS superintendent talks masks, social distancing and educating kids
IBJ reporter Samm Quinn talked with Superintendent Aleesia Johnson about how returning has gone so far and other impacts COVID-19 has had on the state’s largest public school system.
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Articles
IPS superintendent seeks tax increase to fund school reorganization plan
The tax referendum—which would be on the May 2023 ballot—would increase the median homeowner’s bill by $6 per month, IPS officials said.
Q&A with Tony Dzwonar, from the school board to the bus lot
Tony Dzwonar had just wrapped up three consecutive terms on the Washington Township school board—serving from 2008 to late 2020—and was looking for a way to spend his extra free time. Then he remembered that the district—like most school corporations—needed bus drivers.
Indiana sex educators face online attacks, skittish schools
Advocates for sex education in schools say the subject has been politicized by conservatives and lumped into the loud debate about what students are learning about race and what books they have access to in school.
Herff Jones partnership gives graduation memories a digital twist
The deal is with StageClip, a company that uses livestreaming to create 30- to 45-second videos of each graduate who crosses the stage at participating high schools and colleges.
Judge rejects effort to block Indiana online school fraud lawsuit
The lawsuit filed by the state Attorney General’s Office in July accused the two online schools of padding their student enrollments and inappropriately paying money to a web of related businesses before they were shut down in 2019.
‘Whitewashing history’: Indiana teachers fear anti-CRT bill threatens lessons
Some teachers fear they would have to water down or eliminate lessons about important events in history if the state passes sweeping new regulations on how they may address race and racism.
Marion County schools ‘desperate’ to stay open as staff COVID cases hit record highs
At least four of 11 Marion County school districts are buckling under the weight of quarantines as staff absences force a return to remote learning.
Bill seeks to limit some ‘discriminatory concepts’ from being taught in school
Indiana lawmakers on Wednesday began debate on a Republican-backed bill that would require all school curricula to be posted online for parental review and ban schools’ ability to implement concepts like critical race theory.
Indiana schools got $3B for COVID relief, but information on spending often hard to find
Policymakers say that without clear information from school districts, it is hard for the public to know if the money is benefiting students.
Elementary specialization in Indiana cuts teacher effectiveness, study says
By teaching fewer subjects to more students, specialists run the risk of weakened student relationships, reducing teacher effectiveness in reading and math, according to the paper.
Report: Local Black, Hispanic children face ‘chronic lack of access’ to quality education
For students in Marion County, the deficiency begins in preschool and lasts until they’re preparing for college, according to a new report commissioned by the Indianapolis-based Richard M. Fairbanks Foundation.
How Indiana has cut funding for students in poverty, hurting urban schools
In recent years, Indiana lawmakers have prioritized across-the-board increases for schools over support for disadvantaged students, favoring budget strategies that buoy more affluent districts while higher-poverty schools say they’re left without enough resources to serve disadvantaged students.
Holcomb appoints state’s first education secretary
Katie Jenner, who is an adviser to Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb, formerly served as a vice president at Ivy Tech Community College.
Ongoing pandemic worsens schools’ substitute teacher woes
The increased difficulty of finding substitutes is forcing districts to more frequently shift their staffing, with teachers who provide instruction in specialized classes instead being drafted to fill in for absent teachers.
NASA awards $2.8M to Indiana space program
The grant will support NASA student internships and fellowships, student STEM experiences, faculty STEM projects and public STEM engagement throughout Indiana through 2024.
Charter backers battle to preserve edge on IPS school board
With four seats on the seven-member board up for election, the outcome could easily shift the balance of power in the district.
Indiana’s ed-tech sector grows rapidly with startups, not-for-profits
Here are six companies and one not-for-profit organization from central Indiana that are experimenting in the ed-tech sector.
Q&A: Junior Achievement goes virtual with JobSpark program for eighth-graders
The program traditionally combines in-school lessons from teachers with a two-day event at the Indiana State Fairgrounds, where more than 10,000 students explore interactive projects and exhibits set up by more than 100 companies and 1,000 volunteers. This year, it’s going online.
Local education technology firm eyes national growth with higher-ed offering
Standard for Success, a Cloverdale-based educational software company, through 2019 has been growing at a strong double-digit clip and earlier this year launched a new service line company officials are confident will help the firm expand further by signing deals with colleges and universities nationwide.