|
In school districts across Indiana this year, some loud voices are objecting to schools teaching students about race and about racism. Ten states have gone so far as to pass laws that ban the teaching of "divisive" subjects, in an effort to control ideas and confine the teaching of history to what they find to be ideologically palatable—in other words, to substitute propaganda for history.
In this guest post, the grandfather of two students expresses support for our local school district to continue to teach about race and racism. Keith Barton is a professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction and coordinator for the Doctoral Program in Teacher Education and Curriculum Studies at the Indiana University School of Education. I encourage MCCSC to continue teaching about race and racism, both in history and in the world today. Preparing young people to become members of a democratic society requires that they understand difficult and contentious issues in the nation’s past and present. Omitting, ignoring, or downplaying such issues would undermine their ability to work toward justice in public life—an effort that represents the very foundation of U.S. social and political ideals. As a grandparent of two elementary students in MCCSC (one now, the other a year from now), I want them to learn, in regular and systematic ways, about the forces that have shaped the nation—and this includes racism and white supremacy. I want them to learn about the many people—Black, White, Asian, Latinx, LGBTQ, and of differing religions—who have struggled to bring about a more just nation and world, but they can only understand these achievements if they understand the problems that created the need for struggle in the first place. And I certainly want them to learn how these problems continue to plague our society, not just in the form of personal prejudice, but in racially-motivated institutions and practices such as mass incarceration, housing and employment discrimination, and systematic violence against minorities, among other issues. My wife, our daughter, and I talk with the children about these problems. Being of mixed races themselves, they are well aware of the importance of race. Schools should further equip them—and all students—with a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of the role of race in U.S. life, and of ways to bring about a more just society. This is not simply our personal preference as parents and grandparents; it a responsibility of schools, as reflected in state academic standards, in national curriculum frameworks, and even in human rights documents. Students deserve to learn about these issues, and without the work of teachers and schools, their learning is likely to be haphazard at best, and more likely to reinforce the racist practices that schools should be working against. Part of the mission of MCCSC is to prepare “responsible global citizens,” and this cannot occur if students do not learn to face social issues—even the most difficult ones—honestly and thoughtfully. --Keith Barton
When you accept a chunk of someone else's money, there is often a motive or a favor owed. Don Corleone comes to mind: "I'm gonna make him an offer he can't refuse."
What favors do some IPS school board members and Indiana legislators owe? Long overdue, here is all. the. money received during the 2020 election from wealthy folks who support the privatization of public education. You can read part 1 and part 2 here. Do these elected officials work for their communities or their donors? Most of us are aware that many of these legislators (all these folks in this list below are Republicans) would have been elected without this money because Indiana is a conservative state. 
The spending of large amounts in city school board races is new but not too new. And some donations are so large, that it makes a $25 donation from someone who has a legitimate stake in the game—a parent with children in the district—seem insignificant.
Also, the fact that this money appears to come mostly from out of state and then gets sent right back out is sad. Is this democracy? Is this representing you and your neighbors? Is this the only way to get change in IPS? And what change is that? Whose change is that? Is that Reed Hastings change? He doesn't believe in elected school boards last we read. And he founded a company that is a disruptor. How do kids and communities handle disruption? Folks like Reid Hastings and Alice Walton may believe they are doing good. These donations are a fraction of what they are personally worth. It's like you and me donating $20 to a campaign. They may not fully realize the ripple effect. Or maybe they might. At the end of the day, you have to wonder what favors do these elected officials— legislators, school board members—owe and to whom? Will this lead to the further privatization of public education masked under the guise of "choice"? Well, it seems like that was a success this past legislative session based on the American Federation for Children, the Wall Street Journal, and Jeb Bush. And if legislators were so successful in pushing more policy that supports the privatization of public education following their landslide win in 2020, what's on the to-do list for IPS board members? Will this lead to the privatization of IPS? Well over $1.5 million was spent in the name of education privatization in the 2020 election in Indiana. It's a drop compared to the giant, leaky bucket of tuition support funding in Indiana. But these elected decision makers will have control over how tax dollars are used. Read more on this matter: "Indianapolis Public Schools for Sale" "Dark Money Clouds IPS Election" "Why Is There So Much Money Fighting in the IPS School Board Race" "IPS School Board Race Election Results"
–Keri Miksza
P.S. If you have yet to see the documentary Indiana's Choice, please take the time to do so. It is related to the above. And save the dates: May 10th at 6pm on "Bring It On" on 91.3 WFHB, contributors to the film and members of ICPE will discuss Indiana's Choice. "Bring It On" is Indiana’s only weekly radio program committed to exploring the people, issues and events impacting the African-American community. It is also available on Apple Podcasts, May 19th at 7pm there will a film panel discussion on Zoom sponsored by a host of organizations. Stay tuned for more information.
Indiana Coalition for Public Education–Monroe County (ICPE–Monroe County) advocates for all children to have high quality, equitable, well-funded schools that are subject to democratic oversight by their communities.
We are a nonpartisan and nonprofit group of parents, grandparents, caregivers, teachers, and other community members of Monroe County and surrounding areas. 
Every crisis is an opportunity…for profiteers and privatizers.
During the pandemic, the demands on our public schools have multiplied. Public schools throughout Indiana are now supplying both in-person and online instruction. Teachers are stretched thin as they teach in-person and online students and adjust their curricula accordingly. Administrators are working around the clock helping school nurses contact-trace on top of their normal duties. School bus drivers are doubling up their routes in order to carry fewer students at a time. Districts are spending to improve their HVAC systems. School social workers are trying to track down and provide services to the students who have gone missing even as they give more assistance to the students who are present but whose parents have lost jobs and livelihoods. In other words, our public schools need more resources—they need more money—to be able to answer the depth of need in our communities. Yet due to Indiana’s funding model, which relies on per-student tuition support, public schools are already expecting lower revenue; in the pandemic, some students have disappeared, and many families have delayed kindergarten entrance. Let’s be clear: Public schools are the only schools that are legally obligated to educate and serve each and every child regardless of disability status, religion, or family income. We require our public schools to make or find the capacity to serve every child. Even before the pandemic, the fiscal situation for public schools was grim:
That sound you hear is the slow sweep of vultures’ wings. The chair of the Indiana House Education Committee, Robert Behning, has introduced a bill, HB 1005, that would give more state education dollars to parents who can already afford private school tuition. It would lift the family income cap for a family of four to $145,000 in 2023 (already, families of four earning up to $96,000 qualify for a 50% voucher) and remove the income tiers within the program so that all eligible families can receive a 90% voucher. This expansion would come at a high cost to taxpayers. Read Vic’s Statehouse Notes #348 to learn more about the fiscal impact. Were you paying $15,765 per child to send your two kids to Cathedral High School? No problem. The state of Indiana can pitch in. Or $21,795 for your junior at the International School of Indiana? If HB 1005 passes, the state of Indiana has your back. Educating children well is expensive, and the expense is worth it. But there’s a difference in how money is stewarded. When public money goes to public schools, it’s like investing in our community parks or city fire departments. The investments we make in infrastructure and personnel benefit the whole community for generations. When we send state money to private schools, the money may benefit individual families, but the costs disappear into a private world…a gated community, accessible only according to the values and capability of the school leadership, unaccountable to the whole. And while money follows children into private schools, their rights do not. Private schools don’t need to serve students with disabilities, or LGBTQ families, or families with different belief systems; they can fire their gay married employees, as Roncalli and Cathedral did at the behest of their Archdiocese; they don't need to adhere to state curriculum requirements. Vouchers in Indiana are enabling white flight, just like the segregation academies that are their antecedents. Private schools' student bodies may be much whiter than the communities in which they are located. Roncalli High School in Indianapolis has just 7 Black students this year in a school population of 1062. (Nearby public high schools in Southport and Beech Grove have 213 Black students out of 2,326 and 126 of 1005, respectively.) Even with the current voucher income limit, Roncalli received $1.8 million dollars in voucher money in 2019-20. There’s time to stop this bill, but it will take many voices. Email the House Education Committee (addresses are below). You can use the talking points ICPE has compiled. Do it today or tomorrow. The committee meets Wednesday. If you are on fire, consider signing up to testify in person at the committee meeting in Indianapolis on Wednesday. Rumor has it that privatization/school choice advocates will be there in force. Jenny Robinson and Keri Miksza P.S. Guess what? There’s an even worse part of HB 1005, a foot in the door for the blandly named “Education Savings Accounts,” which are like vouchers on steroids. More about that in another post. PPS. Contact Indiana’s House Education Committee to oppose HB 1005: Republican Representatives Behning ([email protected]), Jordan ([email protected]), Carbaugh ([email protected]), Clere ([email protected]), Cook ([email protected]), Davis ([email protected]), Goodrich ([email protected]), Teshka ([email protected]), Thompson ([email protected]) Democrat Representatives Smith ([email protected]), DeLaney ([email protected]), Klinker ([email protected]), Pfaff ([email protected]) Here are all the addresses together if you want to cut and paste: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected] And Indiana PTA has created a quick form letter that allows you to send a quick email.
As promised, we have been updating the list below as we make our way through this election season. The next report will happen after the election as that is how the filing deadlines work.
But we're closing in on $1 million from privatizers to our state candidates in one way or another (I mean, we've got PACs giving to PACs). To catch yourselves up, read this blog entry first. A few things to dig in on in this post: Hoosiers for Great Public Schools, Reed Hastings, John Arnold, and RISE Indy. But first, the chart. 
Hoosiers for Great Public Schools
Recall from the previous post, Hoosiers for Great Public Schools is "a PAC created by former mayor of Indianapolis, Bart Peterson in May 2020. Bart Peterson is currently president and CEO of Christel House International. PAC was registered by Caryl Auslander on April 30, 2020. She is director of Advanced Energy Economy. Her consulting firm is Torchbearer Public Affairs. She was formerly vice president of Education and Workforce Development Policy, and Federal Relations for the Indiana Chamber."
They only have two major donors (so far) totaling $400,000: Reed Hastings (Netflix) and John Arnold (turned his Enron millions into billions as a hedge fund manager). The PAC has dished out $451,000 so far this election cycle, with $200,000 going to another newbie PAC called RISE Indy. 
What is RISE Indy?
Per the Indianapolis Recorder, RISE Indy is a PAC that wants to "bypass controversy." Well, it didn't take too long to get controversial and the article highlighted why. Its board of directors include Al Hubbard (recall him from the last post) and Bart Peterson (who created the PAC Hoosiers for Great Public Schools). A quick search of contributions shows that Hoosiers for Great Public Schools PAC gave $200,000 of money (from Reed Hastings and John Arnold) to the RISE Indy PAC. In addiction Alice Walton has donated $200,000. Yes, that's on top of the $225,000 she has donated to Hoosiers for Quality Education PAC. And Mike Bloomberg donated $100,000 as well. In total RISE Indy has almost $700,000 in its coffers. And if you're wondering what Great Public Schools for Indy is in the table below, that organization shares the same address as RISE Indy, and its registered agent is Jasmin Shaheed-Young, the founder and CEO of that group (and formerly the VP of a national real estate and construction company). 
Where is this money going? Some is going to candidates running in the IPS school board race. Yes. School board races are being funded by PAC money to the tune of over $200,000. RISE Indy alone has contributed $100,000 so far to school board candidates. (You can do your own digging here.)
For more on this matter, read our state-level organization's blog post that speaks about the graphic below. 
Who to vote for and a pro-public education PAC
Now for a bit of a yay for the people. ICPE–Monroe County took our yard sign donations and donated it to a PAC. A pro-public education PAC run by Indiana Coalition for Public Education--Hoosiers for Public Education. $1,800 is heading to honest-to-goodness pro-public education candidates that have been properly vetted and endorsed by the folks operating the PAC. No corporations were involved. No hedge funds either. And we hope to continue these donations because this fight to protect public education, our children, and public school teachers is never over.
In the end, lots of money may not buy lots of votes. Being an educated voter is powerful. Unsure of who to vote for? Check out the endorsements from Hoosiers for Public Education. Join us. Donate. Vote for Public Education. - Keri Miksza Indiana Coalition for Public Education–Monroe County (ICPE–Monroe County) advocates for all children to have high quality, equitable, well-funded schools that are subject to democratic oversight by their communities. We are a nonpartisan and nonprofit group of parents, grandparents, caregivers, teachers, and other community members of Monroe County and surrounding areas. |
Categories
All
Archives
March 2024
Friends
|
RSS Feed
Proudly powered by Weebly