Now more than ever, we call upon the Indiana General Assembly to lean in and support our public schools. This pandemic has revealed how much our communities rely on public schools for not only education, but for food, physical and mental health and the overall care of our kids.  Without public schools, much of our lives and our economy, comes to a screeching halt.

At a time when funding is scarce, it is imperative that we focus our public tax dollars on traditional public schools that accept all children without discrimination and are governed by an elected school board. The great experiment of “school choice” and “money following the child” has resulted in taxpayer funds that belong in public schools, being siphoned away into private hands through various methods such as vouchers, charter and “innovation” schools and other schemes.

This pandemic has revealed how much our communities rely on public schools for not only education, but for food, physical and mental health and the overall care of our kids. Without public schools, much of our lives and our economy, comes to a screeching halt.

This experiment has had a disproportionately negative impact on students living in poverty, as well as students of color, as the schools that open and close down for business are more apt to be in their neighborhoods. Public schools need resources and stability. ICPE calls for a halt to this diversion of public tax dollars and calls on legislators to pass stronger accountability and transparency laws for all schools that accept public funding.

Fiscal responsibility lies with our legislators who must protect our public tax dollars during this time of financial stress and support our Hoosier children’s Constitutional right to public education. 

Click to here to see our 2021 Legislative Priorities