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A sea of red descended upon the Indiana Statehouse on Monday as hundreds of teachers, parents and students from across the state rallied to call for increased funding for public schools—and to protest pending policy proposals that could shift millions of local dollars to charters.
The rally—one of many hosted in recent years by the Indiana State Teachers Association, the state’s largest teachers union—came just hours ahead of a final vote to approve a massive property tax plan. The latest provisions baked into the legislation could reduce public schools’ tax dollars by as much as $744 million over the next three years.
ISTA President Keith Gambill said that blow comes in addition to education funding gaps in the newest draft of the state budget.
“The overall funding increase of 2% per year—of $870 million—does not even meet inflation,” Gambill said. “Our students deserve bold investment, not the bare minimum.”
He said teachers will be pressing lawmakers in the coming days and weeks “to ensure that public dollars are staying with public schools.”
ISTA organizers demand action
The legislative session must end by April 29 but could be finished as early as April 24. All bills—including the state budget—must be finalized by that time.
“Our schools deserve to be fully funded — and fully public — so all kids receive a quality education,” Gambill emphasized.
Teacher attendance at the rally forced at least three Hoosier school districts to move to an e-learning day, including Indianapolis Public Schools and nearby Pike Township, as well as Monroe County Community Schools in Bloomington.
The shift to e-learning appeared to prompt a legislative amendment published Monday morning by Indianapolis Republican Rep. Andrew Ireland.
Proposed language filed to Senate Bill 373, an unrelated education bill, sought to jeopardize funding for public school districts that convert scheduled in-person instructional days to virtual because of “planned or coordinated absence of teachers or other personnel for the purpose of participating in a protest, demonstration, or political advocacy event.”
Districts would risk losing state tuition support for each day of a violation, according to Ireland’s amendment.
Gambill read the amendment aloud during the rally, drawing shouting and boos from the crowd.
“We have got to talk to our legislators today, tomorrow and every day between now and the end of the session. We must be vigilant,” he said. “We have to speak from the heart, and remind them that behind every policy is a classroom with a teacher and students.”
Ireland introduced the amendment Monday afternoon to make a statement, but withdrew it without discussion or a vote.
Rallygoers demand action
Chants echoed throughout the Statehouse halls for more than two hours Monday morning.
“Schools need funding!” “Pay our teachers!” “Defend public education!”
Rallygoers, many dressed in red t-shirts, had homemade signs in tow, too. Banners, poster boards, paper placards—and even painted messages on the backs of LaCroix boxes—were raised by attendees amid chanting, cheering and frustrated yells.
Everyone’s goal was the same: demand “fair” and “adequate” funding for public schools.
Gambill said recent changes to both bills were improvements from their original versions. But he maintained that increases to base tuition support in the Senate GOP’s state budget draft “are not enough,” and held that amendments added to the property tax measure would divert “critical” dollars from traditional publics to charters and could allow districts to “side step” collective bargaining rights for teachers.
Monica Shellhamer, a vice president with the Indianapolis Education Association, said during her rally remarks that teachers continue to be left out of conversations involving school funding.
“Indianapolis public schools has been a target of the legislature for many years and this year is no different,” Shellhamer said. “Bill after bill continued to be submitted to shut down or defund Indianapolis public schools.”
Jenny Noble-Kuchera, president of the Monroe County Education Association, further pointed to pending education cuts at the federal level.
“The way it is currently, public education as we know it will begin to disappear, and our children are the victims,” she said Monday. “We already have severe mismanagement at the federal level of Title I grants for our lower-income students, of critical programs supporting students with disabilities, and elimination of programs for our schools.”
“This is bad enough, and now Indiana politicians can’t put their youngest constituents first, and support basics, like learning to read and write, and foundational math,” she continued. “It’s not OK.”
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