This week’s revelation that former Indiana school chief Tony Bennett allegedly changed the grade of a local charter school has caused a fury of questions that may never be answered.
In a series of emails, Bennett encouraged his staff to fix the “HUGE problem,” when he learned Christel House, owned by noted philanthropist Christel DeHaan received a 2.9 or “C” grade from Indiana’s school ranking system, which categorizes an institution’s academic standing using the A-F system. After strategizing and manipulating, Bennett and other officials at the Indiana Department of Education increased Christel House’s ranking to an “A.”
Some allege Bennett’s motivation to commit such an act is because DeHaan is a prominent supporter of the Republican Party, having donated an excess of $2.8 million to the party since 1998. That total includes $130,000 to Bennett.
DeHaan insists that no one affiliated with the Christel House ever made requests of Bennett or the DOE that would affect the school’s grades. And in an attempt to cover his tracks, Bennett has said the actions were done to ensure the entire system was “face valid.”
Bennett’s actions prove that with power often comes lies and undercover dealings that can literally affect thousands.
Many people are trying to spin this as a political issue; particularly since Bennett’s successor, Glenda Ritz, is a Democrat. This situation has nothing to do with politics or even an assault on the Christel House, instead it has everything to do with right vs. wrong.
There are several things wrong with what occurred last September.
Perhaps at the top of that list is the issue of credibility. If Bennett changed grades to reflect favorably on Christel House, then what has potentially been done to reflect negatively on other schools?
The A-F grading system was implemented in part to determine which schools get taken over by the state as well as the amount of funding schools receive. Just as changes were made to improve grades, similar changes could have been made to decrease grades, making schools appear worse than they actually are.
Whether this was a one-time occurrence that began and ended at Christel House, or if it has been an ongoing thing over the years; the bottom line is thousands of people are negatively affected.
Consider the students for a moment. If modifications have been made to decrease a school’s standing, specific students may have unfairly “lost” simply because they attend a certain school. What impact does such a circumstance have on a child? How can those children feel confident in their ability to perform well if they are being graded on lies? From another perspective, what type of message are we sending our children who attend a school that has received preferential treatment? Do those actions insinuate the importance of surrounding ourselves with affluent people and entities so we can get everything we want in life without having to rightfully earn the things we receive?
Other groups potentially affected by Bennett’s actions are parents, teachers and administration personnel. IPS, the city’s largest school district has recently streamlined and eliminated a lot of positions – largely due to the decreased funding received because schools in the district were taken over by the state or students left to attend charter schools. When people lose their jobs, their livelihood takes an obvious hit, which in turn can negatively impact the state’s economy. That doesn’t sound like Hoosier hospitality to me.
When I learned of the Bennett debacle I immediately thought of former IPS Superintendent Eugene White. While people have their own opinions about White, we can’t honestly say at this point that the issues he faced throughout his tenure with IPS weren’t “planted” by Bennett or anyone else. We cannot fairly say that White and many of the teachers who lost their jobs didn’t perform well. They may have just been pawns in Bennett’s chess game.
You can email comments to Shannon Williams at shannonw@indyrecorder.com.
