School board members represent students, parents and taxpayers living in a school district. They hire and fire superintendents. They also approve district budgets and school curricula.
Ten districts in Marion County have school board members elected by voters. School board members in Speedway are appointed by the Speedway Town Council.
Mirror Indy teamed up with Chalkbeat Indiana and WFYI to bring together everything you need to know about 2026 school board elections in Marion County.
Voter guides
IPS board candidates discuss school closures, AI and legislative funding at forum
Fifteen candidates are running for five seats — one each in Districts 2, 3, 4 and 5 and one at-large seat.
Decoding the ballot: How to read a school referendum question
Mirror Indy explains what that long question at the end of your ballot actually means.
A tax hike or $20M in cuts: Wayne Township’s future on the ballot
Without voters’ support, the westside school district could cut jobs and student programs.
What questions do you have about the Indianapolis school referendum?
Let Mirror Indy know and our K-12 reporter will look into it.
IPS school board endorsements highlight divide between reform, traditional candidates
The IPS board will lose a significant amount of power over district schools after passage of a state law earlier this year.
Where to learn about the Indianapolis school referendum
IPS is having three community meetings to answer questions about the referendum.
Warren Township school board could change after fall election
6 candidates are running for 3 seats in the packed school board race.
Here’s who’s running for school board in Beech Grove
These three candidates will run unopposed to keep their seats.
4 familiar faces running for Wayne Township school board
All candidates in the westside district are sitting school board members.
4 candidates are running for 3 seats on Pike Township school board
Candidates shared thoughts about addressing financial stewardship.
Referendum
If you live in Indianapolis, you may see a question on your ballot for the Nov. 3 election about raising taxes to support schools. Each school district can decide whether or not to pursue the tax increase to fund things like transportation to school, raises for teachers and other operational expenses.
If it feels like you’re hearing more about this than usual this year, that’s because an Indiana law changed recently restricting when schools are allowed to ask for a tax increase. That’s caused more schools than usual to seek this type of funding this year.
In Marion County, five school districts are pursuing a school tax referendum this year. If you live in one of these five districts, you’ll see a question about it on your ballot.
The actual amount taxpayers pay varies based on the value of their home or property — something called assessed value. Referendum rates are calculated based on every $100 of this assessed value.
You can use the links below to plug in your property’s assessed value and find out how much your tax bill could change.
Beech Grove is marketing its tax referendum as a “replacement” referendum. That means the district already has a tax referendum in place and wants to continue collecting taxes at roughly the same amount for the next eight years.
- Last referendum asked: June 2020.
- How did the vote go? 61% voted yes.
- How much did taxes change? The district asked for 55 cents per $100 of assessed value.
- How long would a new referendum last? Eight years.
- Would taxes increase? Beech Grove is seeking 57 cents this time.
- How much money would this bring to schools? About $4.4 million a year.
- What will it be used for? School bus transportation, facilities upkeep and school safety.
- Learn more about Beech Grove’s referendum and how your tax bill might change here.
Decatur Township is calling its tax referendum a “reduce and replace” referendum. District leaders are asking for a tax referendum rate this year that is lower than the current one. That means if the referendum passes, taxpayers could still pay less in coming years than they do today.
- Last referendum asked: May 2019.
- How did the vote go? 66% voted yes.
- How much did taxes change? The district asked for 28.9 cents per $100 of assessed value.
- How long would a new referendum last? Eight years.
- Would taxes increase? Decatur Township is seeking 26.9 cents this time.
- How much money would this bring to schools? $9 million a year at a maximum.
- What will it be used for? School bus transportation, utilities, school safety and building maintenance.
- Learn more about Decatur Township’s referendum and how your tax bill might change here.
A recent change in state law created the Indianapolis Public Education Corporation and gave the group the authority to seek a tax referendum on behalf of Indianapolis Public Schools and nearby charter schools. IPS previously had this responsibility and has shared its tax referendum funds with charter schools in its network. This year, the Indianapolis Public Education Corporation is asking for an increase to the rate taxpayers are paying into the current IPS referendum.
- Last referendum asked*: November 2018.
- How did the vote go? 72% voted yes.
- How much did taxes change? 19.6 cents per $100 of assessed value.
- How long would a new referendum last? Four years.
- Would taxes increase? The corporation is seeking 37.2 cents this year.
- How much money would this bring? No more than $95 million a year.
- What will it be used for? Staff retention, professional development and academic programming, especially benefiting English language learners and students with disabilities.
- Learn more about the Indianapolis Public Education Corporation referendum and how your tax bill might change here.
* IPS asked for a different type of tax referendum in 2023 to fund construction projects. That referendum passed with 59% approval.
Washington Township wants to “renew” its current referendum. That means the district is asking to continue its tax referendum at its current rate. If the referendum passes, taxpayers would see little change to what they currently pay.
- Last referendum asked: June 2020
- How did the vote go? 64% voted yes.
- How much did taxes change? The district asked for 25 cents per $100 of assessed value.
- How long would a new referendum last? Eight years.
- Would taxes increase? Washington Township is seeking 25 cents this time.
- How much money would this bring to schools? $24 million a year at a maximum
- What will it be used for? Recruiting and retaining teachers, school safety and operational costs.
- Learn more about Washington Township’s referendum and how your tax bill might change here.
Wayne Township is asking for a higher referendum rate. The district has previously passed two tax referendums. One in May 2015 and another in May 2019. Those two referendums stacked for several years, meaning taxpayers paid a rate of 70 cents per $100 assessed value. When the 2015 referendum ended, taxpayers only paid 35 cents per $100 assessed value. Now, the district is seeking to move its referendum tax rate back to 70 cents.
- Last referendum asked: May 2019
- How did the vote go? 63% voted yes.
- How much did taxes change? 35 cents per $100 of assessed value.
- How long would a new referendum last? Eight years.
- Would taxes increase? Wayne Township is seeking no more than 70 cents this time.
- How much money would this bring to schools? Up to $41 million a year.
- What will it be used for? Recruiting and retaining teachers, school safety and operational costs.
- Learn more about Wayne Township’s referendum and how your tax bill might change here.
2026 Elections
2026 Election Guide
All the info you need to make informed decisions at the polls.
See the guide →
Follow the live blog →
Watch for results →
Perspectives
Franklin Township school board race attracts 7 candidates for 3 seats
Read how candidates would oversee the district that grew by 48% in the past 20 years.
Get to know the Lawrence Township school board candidates
Candidates shared views on administrator pay, academics and future financial challenges.
8 candidates are running for 3 seats on the school board for Decatur Township
Candidates share thoughts on referendum, academics
3 seats are on the ballot for the Perry Township school board
Here’s what candidates say about academics, finances and the district’s future.
Here’s who is running for Washington Township school board
Candidates shared thoughts on financial and student achievement issues.
15 candidates are vying for 5 seats on IPS school board
Candidates share thoughts about academics, IPEC and looming financial decisions.
Indiana charter schools could receive over $49 million in new revenue from proposed tax increases
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.
Indiana school district referendum guide 2026
What to know about your district’s requested tax increase.
Marion County Election Board removes Lindsey Cornett from IPS school board ballot after challenge
The board allowed her opponent Chris Bultman to remain in the race, saying his record met the requirements.
Confusion on partisan school board law puts two IPS candidates’ spots at risk
Both candidates running for the District 4 seat are now being challenged, in part, because they both filed to run as Democrats.
IPS board candidate fights a challenge to remove her from ballot
Lindsey Cornett, a candidate for the District 4 seat on the Indianapolis Public Schools board, is fighting a challenge to her eligibility to run.
5 takeaways from Chalkbeat’s panel on Indiana’s changes to school board elections and referendums
The upcoming election season will ask Indiana voters to make critical decisions about how schools are funded and who sits on local school boards.
