Dear Indy,
Hi, it’s Jennifer Delgadillo — the arts and culture editor at Mirror Indy. Ryan is off today, so I’m here to tell you what’s new.
Last year, Marion County’s teacher retention rate was 68.5%, meaning about one in three teachers chose not to return to their school.
Why are teachers leaving the classroom?
“I’m mom, I’m auntie, I am the nurse, I am the teacher, I am the counselor,” Sabrina Tiggs, an eighth grade teacher and 16-year veteran of Lawrence Township, told reporter Carley Lanich.
Local nonprofit Teach Indy is leading a project called “Reimagining the Teacher Role” in the hopes of flipping the conversation surrounding teacher retention.
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In other news
- A new historical marker tells the story of Indy jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery. In our first audio story, reporter Sophie Young learns more about the jazz legend and how a team fit his story into 372 characters on each side of a metal marker celebrating his impact in Indy.
- Civil rights leaders say Senate Bill 202 would negatively impact Black faculty and students. “My interpretation is, don’t talk about diversity,” Gwendolyn Kelley, interim education chair for the Indiana NAACP, told Mirror Indy.
- North Central High School invites the community to a dedication of its new Paul Loggan Fieldhouse, named for the school’s longtime athletics department leader who died in 2020 of health complications caused by COVID-19. Find the details here.
What’s going on around the city
- Thursday, March 7: A showcase of artwork from four Herron School of Art + Design students addressing gender expression and generational grief will be on display at the Eskenazi Fine Arts Center, 1374 Indiana Ave., with a reception beginning at 5 p.m. The show closes March 8. Free.
- Saturday, March 9: Martin University, 2162 Station St., will host “Great Communities: It Begins With Us,” a day of workshops on topics such as creating community gardens to combat violence and using art to bring people together. Free, but registration is required.
- Sunday, March 10: The Indianapolis Women’s Chorus will feature soul-folk musician Lea Morris and poet Manon Voice for “Awakening,” a concert celebrating 30 seasons of the choir. The “pay what you can” concert begins at 5 p.m. at the Indianapolis Hebrew Congregation, 6501 N. Meridian St.
— Breanna Cooper, arts and culture reporter
Looking for other things to do? Check out Mirror Indy’s events calendar.
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What else we’re reading today
- WFYI: Gov. Eric Holcomb signed a bill into law that will overturn Indy’s ban on retail pet sales. The ordinance had been designed to limit puppy mills in the city.
- New York Times: There’s a widening gap in voter turnout between white and nonwhite voters in counties that have a history of racial discrimination. The gap grew after the Supreme Court ruled in 2013 to weaken the Voting Rights Act.
- The 19th: The SAT test is going digital. The new format will roll out on March 9 — it will also be shorter and adaptive, which means the difficulty of the questions will depend on student performance.
Notes from our Documenters
Last week, Documenter Sarah Herrera reported that the social work program recently underwent an evaluation during a recent Indianapolis Public Library board meeting.
Yanna McGraw, the library’s first and only social worker, requested a professional program evaluation before hiring new staff.
The evaluation aims to integrate social work services into the entire library system and provide more support.
“I have a trauma-informed lens and approach in my work and practice,
McGraw said. “I look forward to helping this system move forward (by) being trauma-informed and addressing the needs of staff and patrons.”
The social work program extends to 10 branches in Marion County. So far, there have been 1,721 interactions with library patrons.
Read more from the Indianapolis Library board meeting here.
We will let you know more information about the meeting in a brief that will be published tomorrow.
— Ariana Beedie, community journalism director
Interested in being a Documenter? Here’s how.
Reflections
I have spring cleaning on my mind, so I Googled “Indianapolis spring cleaning” to see if there’s anything helpful out there for me — or to share with you. Here’s what I found:
Indy’s Child enlisted a local expert to create a guide that has a little bit of everything. The Indianapolis Cultural Trail is inviting local businesses to help them pick up litter and wash off graffiti along the 8-mile park. If you have things that don’t fit in the bin, Mirror Indy has a guide to donate, recycle or give away unusual items. Even IndyPL has a reading list to help us tackle our annual ceremonial chore list.
Best of luck tidying up!
Jennifer
P.S. Let Ryan know how you feel about this newsletter at ryan.martin@mirrorindy.org. It helps us serve you better.