John Lechleiter: Early childhood education is path out of poverty
United Way of Central Indiana is our best chance to focus resources on our community’s education, financial stability, health and other needs.
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Leslie Zwirn: Reject Trump values or cripple GOP for a generation
The stakes for the nation, our state and our two political parties couldn’t be higher.
Rebecca Buchan: Expand your workforce to include the deaf
Hiring a deaf person is inviting someone into your organization who carries a unique perspective on the world, and likely, to your company.
P.E. MacAllister: A centenarian’s take on the rebirth of Indianapolis
The story of our transformation has bipartisan authors, but growth was fueled by an outstanding succession of Republican leaders.
Chris Moorman: State should free Hoosier farmers to grow hemp
Today’s farm economy is far too complex to “fix” with a silver bullet, but innovation on the farm has always been the key to prosperity.
Michael Foit: Recommit to skilled trades as alternative to college
It’s time to change this “everyone should go to college” mindset, along with the attitude that those who do not go to college are limited to low-income jobs (and, by inference, unhappiness).
Michael Huber: A pass/fail election exam for IPS
The Indy Chamber is committed to a long-term partnership with IPS, investing in the district without compromising public accountability or transparency.
Drew White: Ripe with potential, Cole-Noble needs a plan for its future
I think Cole-Noble should build upon its commercial history and become an innovation district. Startup companies (and even live-work communities) could provide research, consulting and financial services for corporate giants like Cummins and Eli Lilly and Co.
Allison Schnable: New tax law, higher demands pinch not-for-profits
Research by the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy estimates that not-for-profits will lose up to $11 billion in donations next year thanks to changes in the tax law. Not-for-profits will need private donors more than ever.
Bryan Mills: Higher tobacco tax equals lower health care costs
Research suggests that a 10 percent increase in the cost of cigarettes cuts the number of pregnant smokers 7 percent and reduces the number of kids who smoke by a similar percentage.
Janet McCabe: Rolling back clean-car standards is misguided
President Trump’s ill-considered proposal is now available for comment. Let’s hope a sound policy meeting everyone’s needs prevails in the end.
Robert Enlow: School districts can afford to pay teachers more
Had districts kept their non-teacher hiring in line with student growth—and invested the rest in their teachers—Hoosier educators could be making around $25,000 more per year.
KEVIN CHRIST: NAFTA has been boon for the United States
Most Americans today enjoy a wider variety of goods at lower prices than would have been possible without deals like NAFTA.
SHEILA KENNEDY: Why are we blind to shades of gray?
The issue isn’t regulation or no regulation—it’s the necessity and appropriateness of particular regulatory efforts.
Chris Watts: John McCain, Bob Dole and the soul of Indiana’s GOP
John McCain and Bob Dole both put national interest over political expediency: country first, to crib McCain’s 2008 slogan. If we defined a “Dole/McCain Republican,” he or she would be a traditional conservative with a streak of pragmatism, a willingness to compromise and an appreciation for bipartisanship.
Mark Janis & Norman Hedges: We’re your patent lawyers—so fire us, please
When we lose clients, it means they have become successful enough to pay for legal services on their own.
Susan Marshall: The time is now for female founders in the tech industry
When you show how you’ll make money, your gender doesn’t matter. Demonstrate that your business is scaleable and will provide a healthy return, and venture capitalists will be interested.
Paul Halverson & Shawn Smith: Solving Indiana’s substance use crisis starts at school
Evidence-based programming in schools is one critical aspect of a comprehensive response by our city and state.
John McKenzie: Consumers lose if banks win with attacks on credit unions
Raising taxes on credit unions would effectively be increasing taxes on the more than 2 million consumers in Indiana who belong to them.
Tariq Al-Nasir: Why STEM could be the answer to childhood poverty
Now is the perfect time to turn our gaze toward the future and invest in one of the nation’s most undervalued resources, children who are born and grow up at or below poverty guidelines. For the state of Indiana, that is $25,100 for a family of four.