Adrea McCloud has been on the frontlines of Indianapolis Public Schools’ fight to preserve funding.
She and her husband, Zach McCloud, are both music teachers at IPS schools. If the district loses money, the couple fears their jobs could be the first to go.
“It’s more than just consolidating schools,” Adrea McCloud said. “You’re risking teachers and their livelihoods.”
She and her husband were among the hundreds of teachers and parents who rallied April 14 at the Statehouse in support of public school funding. The McClouds are no strangers to the Statehouse. Adrea helped organize a music teachers’ rally earlier this year that grew tense when one protester was arrested.
But, Monday brought the largest crowd yet of teachers and parents rallying against legislation this session. Also new: Teachers represented schools not just from Indianapolis, but from across the state.
The educators were united in their concern over Senate Bill 1 — a priority of Republican lawmakers and Gov. Mike Braun that aims to reform property taxes and provide relief to homeowners in light of climbing assessments. School districts across Indiana, however, are projected to lose millions each year if the bill passes.
Teachers worry it could affect their pay or their district’s ability to attract educators to work at their school. Increasing teacher pay was among Braun’s pledges while he campaigned for governor last year. But not only would SB 1 strain public school budgets, Republicans’ latest budget proposal also leaves little room for growth in traditional public school funding.
“We’ve lost many teachers to many competing school districts,” said Aimee Caffey, a math teacher at Franklin Central High School on Indianapolis’ far southeast side. “We’re just trying to support ourselves and our kids and our families.”
Property tax bill still contested
Senate Bill 1 appeared poised to become law after House Republicans passed a bill last week supported by Braun. But, the temperature changed over the weekend when Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith urged Braun not to sign the bill.
Beckwith — an unlikely ally to teachers unions, if only temporarily — posted on his social media over the weekend that the bill was too complicated and that Braun should veto it.
Teachers like Chandler Guill, however, oppose it because of the anticipated effect it would have on school funding. The district he teaches in, Pike Township schools, could lose as much as $850,000 next year, according to state projections.
“It raises a lot of concerns for my students,” Guill said. “Because at the end of the day, it affects our students, the resources they have and the things that are available to them.”
Bills affecting IPS take center stage
For IPS, the legislation has been the latest move in a session that’s left some feeling exhausted just trying to keep up. An earlier bill this session sought to dissolve the district entirely.
That bill died, but language added to SB 1 last week seeks to make IPS, and districts like it, share property tax dollars with charter schools.
IPS officials estimate that could cost the district up to $96 million by 2032, leading to the elimination of dozens of bus routes and the closure of up to 25 schools.
Another bill — Senate Bill 373 — seeks to create a local alliance to study and propose solutions to simplify the complicated web of overlapping transportation systems among IPS and nearby charter schools.
Though IPS administrators warmed to the latest version of this bill, educators expressed frustration this week over the lack of voice afforded to teachers on the proposed alliance.
The proposal gives seats to IPS Superintendent Aleesia Johnson, Mayor Joe Hogsett and their appointees representing parents of IPS and charter schools. The IPS board president would also get an appointee to the board.
“The educators are still missing,” Monica Shellhamer, a leader of the Indianapolis Education Association, said during prepared remarks Monday. “It’s a nine-seat board and you couldn’t include one teacher?”
While much of the debated legislation this session has centered on IPS and its relationships with Indianapolis charter schools, teachers from other districts say they’re watching what happens closely.
“We know we’re next,” said Laura Petty, a biology teacher at Franklin Central High School. “As soon as they go after IPS … We’re right behind them.”
Districts called off school to support rally
Pike Township schools along with the Monroe County Community School Corp. were the firsts to provide teachers the flexibility to join the Statehouse rally Monday morning. Both districts announced e-learning days on April 11 to support the rally.
Leaders at IPS initially told parents and teachers that school would continue as normal on Monday. The district had already used up the three asynchronous learning days the Indiana Department of Education allows in a school year. Monday was also the beginning of an important state testing window.
Read the letter
However, the district changed its tune after a high number of teachers called off for work Monday. Students of IPS-district managed schools will now make up an extra day of class on May 23.
Speakers at the event praised the unified effort and urged attendees to use these last two weeks of session to call lawmakers and urge them to stop legislation like Senate Bill 1 and Senate Bill 373.
Though as they did so, one southeast Indianapolis lawmaker sought to put a stop to future weekday rallies led by teachers.
Rep. Andrew Ireland, R-Indianapolis, introduced an amendment to Senate Bill 373 that would bar school districts from calling an e-learning day to support a coordinated teacher rally. Word spread of it as Keith Gambill, president of the Indiana State Teachers Association, addressed educators Monday.
His announcement of the new amendment was promptly met with boos from the audience. Ireland withdrew his amendment on the House floor later Monday afternoon but said he intends to bring it back up next year.
“It’s hard to keep up with,” IPS teacher Jessica Carroll told Mirror Indy later during the rally. “To have to see our Department of Education crumbling and bills being put through a legislature that aren’t beneficial to our school population, it’s heartbreaking.”
SB 373 advanced on the House floor on Monday and is now eligible for a vote.
During a marathon session ending after midnight Monday, the Senate voted in a 27-22 split to advance SB 1. The bill now heads to Braun, who expressed in an early morning statement that he looks forward to signing the legislation as soon as he receives it.
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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