Indiana charter schools have tens of millions of dollars at stake in the upcoming ballot questions this November. But it’s unclear in many instances how they officially plan to spend that potential influx of revenue.
State law requires districts in four counties to share revenue from property tax increases approved by voters with charters enrolling students who live within those districts’ boundaries. This year, only districts in two of those counties, Marion and Lake, are seeking those tax increases in November. Nearly all the revenue would go to charters in Marion.
Eight school districts running referendums have reported to the state that they will share that revenue with about 60 charter schools. Altogether, the referendums have a maximum annual total of nearly $200 million, and an estimated $49.5 million of that would go to charter schools.
The potential funding represents the largest amount charters could receive from ballot questions in state history. And one charter can benefit from multiple ballot measures.
Yet only four of the eight districts have included referendum spending plans for individual charter schools in documents submitted to the state. And of the $49.5 million, nearly all of it — $48.7 million — is not accounted for in those official spending plans, although several charters did discuss their plans for the money with Chalkbeat.
Generally, funds from these ballot measures can be spent on day-to-day operations, such as staff salaries, academic programs, and transportation.
State law requires districts to submit spending plans from charter schools that would benefit from the tax increase to state government, alongside their own plans.
Yet there is little oversight of this process. Some charter officials say districts did not ask them to submit a spending plan, while some districts have said certain charter schools failed to provide them when asked.
The Indianapolis Public Education Corporation, which is floating a ballot question for Indianapolis Public Schools and charter schools that could provide the most money, did not include charter school spending plans in its documents submitted to the state. But the corporation plans to track spending of future potential referendum dollars, its acting director Michael O’Connor said.
The estimated funding for individual charters is tied to the number of a school’s students who live in the district asking for a tax increase.
Christel House Academy South stands to gain an estimated $2.5 million — the highest amount for a single charter school — if voters approve all three referendums it’s participating in. Most of that funding would come from the Indianapolis Public Education Corporation’s ballot question. Over 90 percent of its 975 students lived within IPS borders last spring, according to state data.
Christel House Indianapolis CEO Emily Masengale anticipates spending much of that funding on staffing and transportation. Christel House Academy South provides transportation to over 450 students, and in recent years its transportation costs have increased by 28%. Transportation costs for both the South and West campuses within the Christel House Indianapolis charter network amount to over $1 million annually, according to the network.
“Transportation and staffing are always really big expenses,” she said. “We wanted the best teachers in front of our students, so we always strive to ensure that we have comparable pay to districts.”
The charter networks with the most to gain include Phalen Leadership Academies, which has six schools eligible for ballot measure funding through IPEC and the Metropolitan School District of Wayne Township. Phalen could receive up to nearly $6 million. And Paramount Schools of Excellence, which has four schools eligible for funding across four districts, could gain $4.1 million.
KIPP Indy could get up to $3.6 million in new revenue if voters approve referendums for IPEC and the Metropolitan School District of Decatur Township pass. The charter network plans to use funding for professional development and initiatives to increase student attendance, among other things.
“Because the referendum funding would represent a significant new investment in our schools, we want to be thoughtful about aligning those dollars with the strategies we believe will have the greatest impact on students,” the charter network said in a statement.
At Purdue Polytechnic High School, which has two Indianapolis campuses that could gain roughly $2 million, CEO Keanna Warren said the network would use the money on “competitive teacher compensation, transportation, and student support,” she said in an email.
The general election is Nov. 3. Early voting starts on Oct. 6.
This article was written by Chalkbeat Indiana reporter Amelia Pak-Harvey.
