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Thursday, March 28, 2024

Let your voice be heard on IPS funding

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The United States trails behind some of its worldwide counterparts who are thriving in the educational realm.

Countries like South Korea, Finland and the United Kingdom have made education a top priority with diverse curriculum and affordable options. The United States … well, not so much. 

In America, the cost of education has continuously risen over the years. This sad reality is not only true at the collegiate level, but also for primary education.

In Indiana, school districts are squeezed for funds — there simply isn’t enough money available to sustain many school districts. One way districts are tackling this problem is through referenda; school districts throughout Indiana are directly asking the electorate for assistance.

In this week’s Recorder, Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS) Superintendent Lewis Ferebee gave the Recorder an exclusive interview detailing the district’s plans to pursue a referendum this coming spring. IPS is the state’s largest district, and it has had its share of controversy over the years, including the board’s recent decision to do away with four popular high schools.

The referendum will be asking residents for approval to increase taxes to fund $90 million for annual expenses for the 2018-19 school year, as well as $200 million for capital improvements. 

However, before IPS makes its case to voters, it must first get approval from the IPS board of commissioners this month to put the referendum on the ballot. If IPS commissioners say yes, the next step will be for the general public to weigh in by voting yes or no in May’s election. 

In his interview with the Recorder, Ferebee said IPS would probably form a political action committee (PAC) to reach out to residents. Its efforts would probably be similar to the 2011 capital campaign used by Wishard Hospital to raise funds for a new facility that led to the current Eskenazi Hospital. 

Although the district has made some progress academically by thinking outside of the educational box, IPS officials have a lot of work ahead of them as they seek to explain to the board and local voters why more funds are needed for a district that has lost students and closed schools. 

While Indianapolis residents haven’t seen a school referendum in recent years, those in other counties have during the past few election cycles. This shows us that education funding is one of the critical issues of our time. As our state legislature convenes next month, hopefully our lawmakers will take the lead in prioritizing an overhaul to our education funding mechanisms. 

No doubt, stakeholders in our community will have strong opinions on the referendum issue and may disagree as to how IPS can reach its full potential. However, regardless of where we may stand individually, it is important that we all get involved, make our voices heard and do what we can to help IPS reach its goal of becoming a world-class school corporation for a world-class city. 

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