More than a year ago, Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett entered his latest term with a big promise.
“We will make Indianapolis an educational destination,” the third-term mayor said during his inaugural speech in January 2024, “among the finest our country can provide.”
Indy residents waited for much of last year to learn what the mayor’s vision would bring.
Now, with the creation of a new education alliance, the Hogsett administration appears poised to take on a more active role in how students here receive their education.
That group — the Indianapolis Local Education Alliance — was created by state lawmakers this year to study ways to improve access to public schools, including charter schools, within the IPS boundaries.
What to know about the Indianapolis Local Education Alliance:
- Indy is home to dozens of traditional public and charter schools. Some have advocated for years for a simplified system.
- State lawmakers threatened to step in this year. One wanted to dissolve IPS and convert the district into charter schools.
- IPS advocates pushed back and compromised with the creation of the new group. It will study facilities, transportation and finance. Recommendations are expected by the end of the year.
By statute, Hogsett is chairing the alliance. Four of his appointees — all with experience in the charter sector — also serve as members.
“Families have many choices, but our buildings are not always in the right place and transportation can be, and is, a major barrier,” Hogsett said during the alliance’s first meeting in June. “The (alliance) was created to make recommendations to address these specific operational challenges to bring coherence, collaboration and shared strategic vision to our city’s educational infrastructure.”
It’s unclear just yet what changes the alliance will recommend. And all of this is happening as the Hogsett administration pitches the city budget to the City-County Council over the next several weeks and grapples with slight budget cuts driven by state cuts to local property tax revenue.
While most of the administration’s investments in education initiatives would remain relatively level, Hogsett has hired Michael O’Connor with Bose Public Affairs as a consultant for the education alliance work through a $340,000 contract.
So, what’s in store for Indianapolis education this year?
How does Indianapolis school funding work?
The vast majority of financial backing for public schools does not come from the city.
Most school funding comes through a combination of state dollars and property taxes. Charter schools and districts generally set their own budgets using estimates of property tax collections and state funding directed to schools based on how many students they enroll.
Most districts, like Wayne Township schools, present a proposed calendar year budget around when kids go back to school. Their boards generally wrap up budget adoption later in the fall. Others, like IPS and Warren Township schools, determine their budgets on a fiscal year basis, meaning their school boards typically review and adopt budgets in the spring.
Quick links to your district’s school board schedule
It could be a particularly tough year for some Marion County districts as school officials prepare for the effects of recently enacted property tax cuts.
You can learn more about budget creation and share your thoughts about school funding priorities by attending meetings of your local school board.
School boards are required to have a public hearing at least 10 days before adopting their budget. Board meetings dates can typically be found on your local school district’s website.
Indianapolis mayor’s role in education
Indianapolis, however, plays an uncommon role in public education. It’s the only city in the state where the mayor oversees many charter schools.
Indianapolis does this through its Office of Education Innovation — an arm of the mayor’s office.
As a charter school authorizer, the Office of Education Innovation reviews proposals for new schools and monitors the academic, fiscal and operational health of existing schools. The education office charges a fee to the schools it oversees, which funds salaries for those working in the office.
Because of this structure, the office’s funding stands out from other city departments. A significant portion of the office’s budget — an estimated $1.3 million in 2026 — is self-funded.
The city does, however, fund two programs run by the office: Indy Achieves and Circle City Readers.
Funding for Marion County students
Launched in 2018, Indy Achieves provides financial support and guidance to help Marion County residents complete college. The city is budgeting $2 million for this program in 2026 — about $500,000 less than in the 2025 budget.
City officials say that’s because Indy Achieves will no longer need to spend as much time helping younger students with their applications to 21st Century Scholars. A recent change in law requires the statewide scholarship program to auto-enroll eligible students, saving families time and trouble filling out applications.
“We’ve now been able to right-size their budget,” Office of Education Innovation Director Shaina Cavazos said of Indy Achieves, “to continue to protect all of the important work that they’re doing for students and to make it possible to support other work that the city is doing on behalf of students.”
That work includes Circle City Readers. The program — which pays reading tutors to work with small groups of students across 10 Indianapolis schools — was launched in 2023 using federal pandemic relief dollars.
With that federal support coming to an end, the Hogsett administration now plans to spend $400,000 of city funds on Circle City Readers to ensure the program continues through the end of the 2025-26 school year.
The Office of Education Innovation is expected to give a presentation on its 2026 budget in a meeting of the City-County Council’s Education Committee at 5:30 p.m. Sept. 16 in the Public Assembly Room of the City-County Building, 200 E. Washington St.
Indy education alliance sets stage for big changes
The city is also taking on a new, more active role in public schooling through the Indianapolis Local Education Alliance.
The nine-member alliance is made up of a mix of IPS and mayoral appointees. It’s tasked with making recommendations by the end of the year for policy changes on the local and state level that could support more collaboration between IPS and nearby charter schools.
The city has hired a consultant to assist in the effort. O’Connor is a former IPS board member and principal consultant with Bose Public Affairs. He was brought on in July to provide project management services for the alliance.
O’Connor was signed to a six-month contract with the city that, at a minimum, costs $40,000 a month with a maximum cap of $340,000. In the contract, O’Connor is tasked with creating a facilities assessment plan and transportation model that could be adopted by Indianapolis schools.
The contract allows for a four-month extension should Hogsett officials seek to keep O’Connor past December to lobby state lawmakers to enact changes proposed by the education alliance.
State lawmakers didn’t provide any money for the local education alliance when they established the group. City officials are paying for O’Connor’s contract with money freed up from a vacant deputy mayor position, Hogsett’s chief of staff Dan Parker said during an Aug. 12 city committee meeting.
So far, the alliance has heard presentations on school finance and building use. It’s expected to meet next at 6 p.m. Sept. 24. A location has not yet been announced, but will likely be posted on the Indianapolis Local Education Alliance’s website at least 48 hours before the meeting.
Mirror Indy, a nonprofit newsroom, is funded through grants and donations from individuals, foundations and organizations.
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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