Stephanie Sponsel: There’s more to do to support women-, minority-owned firms
But we’d like to see the governor be more specific about his proposal. He didn’t say, for example, how much money he wants to put behind it.
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Mario Rodriguez: Blueprint for post-COVID economy includes Blue Line route
The Infosys project reaffirmed my belief that the airport should aspire to move people and move the needle on economic development.
Jean Ross: Will 2021 be the Year of the Nurse at the Statehouse?
I am discouraged we might waste another year not addressing the nursing shortage in Indiana. Cost, access and poor health outcomes will continue to be the symptoms discussed, and addressing the nursing shortage will not be seen as a probable diagnosis.
Scott Keller: Transform unused People Mover into Black Heritage Trail
The Indiana Black Heritage Trail would literally “rise above” Indianapolis and be a tangible symbol of institutional memory in support of Indiana’s Black leaders.
Earl Martin Phalen & Scott Bess: Charter schools should get fair share of education funding
Giving these students the support they need to thrive—social workers, social and emotional supports, and more—requires resources.
Sheila Kennedy: Word games prevent honest policy conversations
Today’s linguistic game revolves around “socialism.” If policymakers were really discussing economic systems, rather than using labels to hide their actual motives, they would define their terms.
John McDonald: Creating companies in the midst of a pandemic
I hope one lasting effect of the pandemic is a renaissance in entrepreneurship, thanks to the dramatic acceleration of the gig economy.
Steve Sanner: Public art offers vitality amid the pandemic and beyond
Throughout the pandemic, artists have found new ways to communicate and express themselves. Similarly, residents have become increasingly receptive to public art.
Dennis Sasso: Religious holidays help us see light—even in the darkness
Civilization, in its diversity, is the ability to allow the past not to define us, but to teach, sensitize, challenge and inspire us to shine a new light.
Tom Miller: Here is a better strategy for CARES Act funding
An extended grace period and broadened scope would help states and communities develop new, forward-looking strategies to thrive in the long term, not just the short-term emergency.
Joe Hogsett: Intervention center is key piece in crime-fighting puzzle
The Assessment and Intervention Center is the culmination of the city’s efforts over the last four years to build “off ramps” from the criminal justice system for individuals who do not represent a threat to the community and whose needs are better met through intervention than jail.
Paul Ashley: Benefits renewals could set tone for COVID recovery
For employers, health benefits can seem like a black box even in the best of times. The pandemic made things even more confusing.
Sheila Suess Kennedy: Using courts to promote homophobia is so last century
Outgoing Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill wants states to be able to deny married same-sex couples the right to be recognized as parents of their children.
Jim Litten: Fair housing is an issue that all of us must tackle
Homeownership is one of the most valuable opportunities to build wealth, but that opportunity is dependent on access and affordability. Everyone must have equal access to affordable housing and financing in order to participate in the American dream of homeownership.
RENN: Downtown Indy needs a Purdue research center
Other major research universities in college towns are already making this kind of push into the heart of nearby major cities.
OGDEN: Not-for-profits need your help to continue their vital work
Not-for-profits wouldn’t exist without the tremendous support we receive from local communities. We depend on your time, money and talent.
Mary Carney: Rural hospitals struggle to ward off staff shortages
We must find new ways to extend higher education outside of urban-centric areas and support health care access in all communities across the state.
Rupal Thanawala: Kamala Harris cracked the code. Can others?
After 244 years, the United States joins the list of countries with a woman in or near its top job. One can wonder why it took so long for America to crack the code, but Harris has done it, becoming the first woman and the first Black Asian American to be elected vice president.
Billie Dragoo-Garcia: The ‘new normal’ is not new—and it’s not going away
As the weather gets colder and COVID cases spike, employees returning to the office before January looks less and less likely. The challenge is how to optimize the opportunities that this transformation has opened and to create innovative changes in the workforce of the future.
Sheila Kennedy: America is being penny wise and pound foolish
Despite Donald Trump’s sneering disinclination to help “mismanaged blue cities,” the current state and local government financial crisis is a result of the pandemic, not incompetent governance. And this crisis isn’t limited to Democratic jurisdictions.