Skip to primary content
Skip to secondary content

School Matters

K-12 education in Indiana

School Matters

Main menu

  • Home
  • About

Tag Archives: education savings account

A budget glass half empty

Posted on April 23, 2021 by stevehinnefeld
1

The two-year budget approved Thursday by the Indiana legislature is unquestionably good news for Hoosier students and teachers. Thanks to a surprisingly positive revenue forecast, lawmakers had $2 billion more to spend than expected. They wisely directed the lion’s share to education.

The budget adds $1 billion for K-12 schools over the next two years. It increases “tuition support,” the state funding that pays for most school operations, by 4.6% in 2021-22 and by 4.3% in 2022-23. It includes $150 million for COVID-19 learning recovery grants and $600 million to bolster a teacher pension fund.

The legislature looked to Gov. Eric Holcomb’s Next Level Teacher Compensation Commission for guidance on raising teacher pay – after largely ignoring the panel’s December 2020 report throughout the session. The report called for raising the starting salary for teachers to at least $40,000 and boosting overall teacher pay until it matches other Midwestern states.

Continue reading →
Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged education savings account, indiana state budget, k-12 schools, school funding, tuition support, vouchers | 1 Reply

Senate budget would dial back voucher expansion

Posted on April 9, 2021 by stevehinnefeld
2

Maybe those phone calls, emails and school board resolutions had an impact. Whatever the cause, the two-year state budget being advanced by the Indiana Senate is somewhat friendlier to public education than the budget approved in February by the House.

Most significantly, the Senate budget would partially roll back the ambitious expansion of Indiana’s private school voucher program that was included in the House budget.

Like the House budget, it would create a new K-12 education savings account program, but it would limit participation and costs. Also important: It would remove a House-approved cap on the complexity index, the funding formula feature that favors districts and schools with more disadvantaged students.

The Senate budget, approved Thursday by the Appropriations Committee, would increase annual state spending on K-12 schools by a little over $300 million over two years. That’s slightly more than the House budget but a far cry for the $1.5 billion annual increase needed for Indiana to catch up on teacher pay.

Under the House version of the budget, nearly 40% of increased K-12 funding would go to the new ESA program and to vouchers, which now serve about 3.5% of Hoosier students. Advocates for public schools raised the alarm. More than 170 school boards passed resolutions opposing the voucher expansion. Teachers, school boards and administrators lobbied against it.

The Senate budget would expand vouchers, but not as dramatically. Some voucher students would qualify at up to 225% of income limit for reduced-price school meals: $110,000 for a family of four. Higher-income voucher students would get increased state support. (Chalkbeat Indiana has the details).

It’s remarkable that the Senate budget, with an expansion of vouchers and only a modest increase in K-12 funding, could almost come as good news. But the House voucher expansion and ESA program were so egregious that the Senate plan seems mild by comparison.

The next step is for the full Senate to approve the budget. Then a conference committee will resolve differences between the House and Senate versions, on education and other spending. Where they end up is anyone’s guess. At the beginning of the session, leaders of the House and Senate seemed aligned on their pro-voucher rhetoric: Both sides called for “expanding choice” and “funding students, not systems.” The Senate now seems to have walked that back somewhat.

Meanwhile, supporters of public schools will and should continue to speak out against expanding vouchers. The fact that about 60% of Indiana school boards – not typically a partisan group – approved resolutions appealing to their legislators may be unprecedented. If the advocacy so far has had an effect, maybe legislators can be persuaded to shelve this ill-advised voucher expansion plan.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged education savings account, Indiana budget, Indiana Senate, public education, vouchers | 2 Replies

School takes parent role to new level

Posted on March 9, 2021 by stevehinnefeld
3

A new Indiana school that combines virtual education and elements of homeschooling is prompting questions about the limits of school choice and how the state will enforce K-12 regulations at a time when more parents are opting for online learning.

The school, Tech Trep Academy, is operated by a Utah company under contract with Cloverdale Community Schools. It opened in the fall of 2020 and enrolls 175 students.

Critics have focused on two issues: whether the school complies with state law that requires five or six hours of daily instruction, and whether it is appropriate to use state funds to buy “supplemental” learning materials for students, including computers and Disney Plus memberships.

Tech Trep director and marketing specialist Janet Cox said the school provides “the best of both worlds,” combining the close parent involvement of homeschooling with the structure and funding of a public school.

Continue reading →
Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged education savings account, homeschooling, learning materials, online learning, tech trep, virtual school | 3 Replies

Voucher philosophy: money to ‘follow the child’

Posted on February 1, 2021 by stevehinnefeld
2

Indiana House Speaker Todd Huston explained the rationale for expanding private-school vouchers in a story published by the Associated Press. “The overall policy is money should follow the child, to where that child is being educated,” he said.

So there you have it: the philosophy of universal school vouchers, as outlined nearly 70 years ago by libertarian economic Milton Friedman and advanced by his acolytes ever since.

No concern about accountability, about qualified teachers or a fact-based curriculum, about equity, about the rights of children and families. No audits of how public money is spent. No concept that public funding for education should serve the greater good, not just the self-interest of individuals and families.

Continue reading →
Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged education savings account, Indiana legislature, neovoucher, rep. todd huston, vouchers | 2 Replies

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 1,819 other followers

Recent Posts

  • Vouchers prop up private schools
  • School referendum language is ‘a lot misleading’
  • Let’s take back the Fourth of July

Blogroll

  • Alexander Russo
  • All Things Education
  • B-Town Errant
  • Bridging Differences
  • Dana Goldstein
  • Gary Rubinstein's Blog
  • Get on the Bus
  • Hechinger Report
  • HechingerEd
  • Hoosier Ed
  • Indiana Coalition for Public Education
  • Indiana Department of Education
  • John Merrow Taking Note
  • ken m libby
  • Monroe County Community School Corp.
  • National Education Policy Center
  • Northeast Indiana Friends of Public Education
  • Rick Hess
  • School Finance 101
  • Shanker Blog
  • StateImpact Indiana
  • The Jose Vilson
  • The Mind Trust
  • Washington Post Answer Sheet
  • WordPress.com
  • WordPress.org

Archives

  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011
  • August 2011
  • July 2011
  • June 2011
  • May 2011
  • April 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • January 2011
  • December 2010
  • November 2010
  • October 2010
  • September 2010
  • August 2010
  • July 2010
  • June 2010
  • May 2010
Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com.
Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • Follow Following
    • School Matters
    • Join 1,819 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • School Matters
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar