Bethel Park Elementary’s leadership continues to maintain that no decision has been made about the 2025-26 school year.
Several others, though, are moving forward as if the school will close this summer.
That includes the director of Enroll Indy, which is no longer allowing families to match with Bethel Park next school year. The school’s authorizer, the Mayor’s Office of Education Innovation, also sent a letter to families last week explaining that the school’s charter is being revoked and that the last day of regular instruction will be May 30.
Charter schools like Bethel Park can continue operating after losing a charter if they find another authorizer to oversee them. But when asked if Bethel Park is pursuing that option, board Chair Lakisha Crawford told Mirror Indy that the school hasn’t decided.
“We haven’t had any of those conversations yet,” Crawford said. “We’re not there yet.”
And that’s not the only thing that’s unclear about the school on the southeast side. The Bethel Park board in its Monday meeting also voted to approve what they referred to as “building buyout” documents.
It’s uncertain what those documents are. They appear to be related to Victory College Prep’s offer to buy the building from Bethel Park’s landlord, but Crawford wouldn’t specifically answer Mirror Indy’s questions about that. The board didn’t provide much detail during the public meeting, either.
Monday’s vote followed a 30-minute closed-door meeting that was not publicly posted by the school. When asked about the “building buyout,” Crawford referred Mirror Indy to Victory College Prep.
“They’re the ones buying, so they would definitely have more information,” Crawford said. “Our conversations are about who currently owns the building.”
In a statement, a Victory College Prep spokesperson said the school expects to close on their offer to buy the building soon. The statement declined to say how much money has been offered.
“VCP can confirm that all necessary paperwork and documentation to facilitate our purchase of the Bethel Park Elementary school building has been completed and received as of Tuesday, Feb. 11,” the statement reads. “We have scheduled a formal closing to finalize the transaction for this week.”
Meanwhile, it’s unclear what Bethel Park’s leadership is communicating to families about the school’s future.
The school sent a letter home to families in late January — a day after Mirror Indy published a story about the city’s decision to revoke the school’s charter over concerns about the school’s financial standing.
The letter assured parents that Bethel Park would continue operating through the end of the school year but did not address whether the school would remain open after that.
Read the letter
What happens next for Bethel Park families?
Crawford, the board chair, said families with questions can contact Bethel Park leadership or look to Enroll Indy for information about other schools.
“Families know that they can come to the principal here to try to get an understanding of what’s next,” Crawford said.
On Monday night, Bethel Park board members discussed a recent town hall meeting for families. Principal Jade Welch told the board that families wanted to write letters in support of the school and that she was working on ways for their voices to be heard.
After the meeting, Crawford said there had been no coordinated effort to write letters. Rather, Crawford said, the effort was an expression of families’ emotion.
To whom the letters may be sent is unclear; the school’s authorizer told Mirror Indy that the office hadn’t received any.
Victory College Prep nearing purchase of Bethel Park building
It’s also unclear what action taken by the Bethel Park board during its Monday night meeting means for the future of the school building.
The board didn’t make a copy of the “building buyout” documents available during the meeting.
Victory College Prep made an offer in late October to buy the building that Bethel Park leases from the Charter Schools Development Corp., an organization that finances property purchases for charter schools.
Victory College Prep leaders also brought a proposal to Bethel Park last month that would merge the two schools, sending Bethel Park students to Victory College Prep’s Sloan Avenue campus and turning the current Bethel Park building into a high school.
Victory College Prep set a Feb. 14 deadline to decide next steps for the building, according to presentation slides the school provided to Mirror Indy last month.
See the presentation
Representatives from Victory College Prep did not provide a response to Mirror Indy’s questions about such a school partnership other than to say leadership from both schools continue to meet and talk about the future.
Whether a potential merger was discussed in the board’s closed meeting held before the public meeting Monday also is unclear.
The school did not provide public notice for the closed meeting, which appeared to be a violation of state law.
When asked why the board didn’t provide notice for its closed meeting, Welch said the school informed its authorizer and wasn’t told it needed to be shared anywhere else.
Kris Cundiff, a former deputy public access counselor for the state of Indiana, said all charter schools are required by state law to share the time, date and location of any closed meetings with the public at least 48 hours in advance.
Those notices must be posted at the location of the meeting and cite state law explaining why the board is meeting in what’s known as an executive session. Cundiff, who now works as an attorney for the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, said discussion of a potential building sale would be a legal reason to have a closed meeting.
Still, the board is required to tell the public the topic of discussion, Cundiff said.
Shaina Cavazos, who directs the city’s Office of Education Innovation, told Mirror Indy that her staff were told the meeting would be to discuss information related to the purchase of the Bethel Park building and information presented by Victory College Prep.
Enroll Indy not matching students with Bethel Park
Cavazos, meanwhile, sent a letter to Bethel Park families Feb. 7 that explained their school would close because it couldn’t meet financial expectations.
She encouraged families to use Enroll Indy to explore other school options and notify Bethel Park staff of where students plan to go next year so their records could be transferred.
Read the letter
The nonprofit Enroll Indy helps facilitate enrollment in more than a hundred public schools in the city, including both IPS and charters.
Enroll Indy Executive Director Lynn House said the nonprofit must still enroll students at Bethel Park for the remainder of this school year. That’s why families may notice the school is still posted on Enroll Indy’s School Finder website.
However, House said Enroll Indy plans to tell anyone seeking enrollment this year about the charter revocation and will actively encourage families to apply for other schools for the 2025-26 year.
She said only three or four families placed Bethel Park as their top choice school during Enroll Indy’s first round lottery window, which closed Jan. 24. All of those students listed second choices and will be matched with those schools, House said.
She encouraged families who have not yet submitted an Enroll Indy lottery application to take advantage of the second round lottery window, which opened on Jan. 25 and extends through April 18.
“Applying before the summer is always helpful because you have a greater chance of getting the school you want versus waiting until June,” House said.
Families can find more information about Enroll Indy matching online and can call 317-426-3234 to talk to an enrollment specialist.
Mirror Indy reporter Carley Lanich covers early childhood and K-12 education. Contact her at carley.lanich@mirrorindy.org or follow her on X @carleylanich.
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