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Charter school leaders running schools in Indianapolis Public Schools facilities say transferring or selling the buildings to them could save the district over $37.5 million annually.
Yet supporters of traditional public schools say the district must be allowed to charge charter operators the full cost of services the district provides to charters in its Innovation Network, such as the opportunity to operate in IPS buildings.
The requests are some of many that the nine members of the state-mandated Indianapolis Local Education Alliance must contend with as it works to submit recommendations on transportation and facility usage to city, state, and district leaders by the end of the year. The requests came during the ILEA’s second public meeting on Wednesday.
Leaders for 20 of the 25 charter schools in the district’s Innovation Network — and one Innovation school that just won approval to become a charter school — floated the building transfer idea to the ILEA in a letter submitted as public comment.
The alliance, which is tasked with reducing inefficiencies across the multiple traditional and charter schools in IPS borders, should consider this option as it brainstorms future facility plans, the letter said. The ownership change would give school leaders complete control to make decisions about the buildings they occupy, the leaders said.
“We know that there is a moment of urgency for our city and for the decisions that the ILEA needs to make,” Eddie Rangel, CEO of Adelante Schools, which operates in Emma Donnan, told Chalkbeat ahead of the meeting. “And we want to be good stewards of what needs to happen for the facility at Emma Donnan.”
Innovation schools are independently run but contract with the district for services such as custodial and transportation. Some services — such as rent and transportation — are offered to Innovation schools at no cost, while others may come with a charge. Most of the district’s 30 Innovation schools are charters. A law passed last year restricted how much IPS could charge Innovation schools for services.
Earlier this month, the IPS Parent Council — formed as IPS faced existential threats in the most recent legislative session — called for IPS to charge charter schools the full cost of operating in an IPS school.
The group also called for a repeal of the $1 law that requires IPS to sell vacant school buildings to charters for $1. Instead, the district must “regain full authority” to lease or sell buildings at market value, the group urged.
Accountability system crucial to future decisions, some say
At its second public meeting on Wednesday, ILEA members reviewed school enrollment and property tax data, focusing in part on how schools are funded and implications that the state’s latest tax reforms could have on schools.
Beyond facilities and funding, several public commenters called for a universal accountability system by which to determine whether to close underperforming schools regardless of type.
Virginia Ramos told the alliance during public comment that her grandson was failed by both IPS and charter schools.
As a teacher, she said, one of the most important things to be recommended is an accountability system that looks not only at state test scores, but teacher retention rates, teacher credentials, attendance rates before and after count day, suspension rates, and the achievements of English as a second language and special education students.
“It’s not until we hold all those things, all those data points, can you have a complete picture of how schools are doing,” she said.
Charter leaders cite Innovation contracts in bid for building ownership
The letter from charter leaders referenced a clause in some Innovation contracts for the schools represented in the letter. The clause indicates the district could be open to selling or transferring the buildings to the operators in the future, and states that by the end of this year, the district will develop criteria that the operator must meet to be eligible to own the building. The letter did not address how much, if anything, charters would pay for the buildings.
“For those of us ready to pursue this option, owning facilities presents exciting opportunities for our school communities,” the letter said. “Having complete control over the space where our educators teach, students learn, and families connect would benefit both the district and the city as a whole.”
Rangel said the leaders estimated $37.5 million in cost savings to the district across all of their schools based on district cost estimates for running those buildings.
At Adelante, Rangel said, owning the building would allow the school to expand its fine arts programming by building a stage.
Another option, the leaders said, could be using the facility authority created as a three-year pilot program under newly enacted state law. The authority, a seven-member board, was written into the same bill that created the ILEA, giving other school districts the option to participate in a pilot program. The pilot would make the authority responsible for overseeing and managing school facilities.
Superintendent Aleesia Johnson, who is also an ILEA member, said after the ILEA meeting that the district has engaged with a couple of schools that have expressed interest in ownership but is examining whether all the signatories to the letter would like to acquire their buildings or would be supportive of an independent authority.
It’s unclear how or whether the charter schools could afford to pay for those services on their own. Rangel said charter leaders have been discussing the potential of individual schools to band together to purchase services.
The leaders also asked that future facilities assessments be conducted by experts “who understand the unique education landscape in our city” and called for that report to be made public.
Four Innovation charter schools operating as the only school in IPS buildings — Global Prep, Matchbook Learning, KIPP Indy, and Phalen Leadership Academy at Francis Scott Key 103 — operated at over 100% capacity for the 2024-25 school year, according to a Chalkbeat analysis of state enrollment data and the target capacity of IPS buildings provided in a building assessment that the district commissioned in 2020.
Across all IPS buildings that are still operating as schools, 17 of 57 buildings are operating at below the district average of 60% capacity, according to the data. That includes a few Innovation charters, including Liberty Grove Schools, Phalen Leadership Academy at Louis B. Russell School 48, and Adelante Schools at Emma Donnan Elementary and Middle School.
Parent council calls for limitations to charters
Parents with the IPS Parent Council also called for the group to consider a moratorium on all new charter schools through 2035.
“This pause will allow time to assess long-term needs and avoid unnecessary school closures that … disrupt families and communities,” said Anh Nguyen, a parent of two IPS students.
The request is more stringent than a state law legislators passed this year that only allows the mayor’s office to open new charter schools through the rest of 2025.
The group’s petition calls for Innovation and charter schools to employ licensed staff, offer school counselors, and provide transportation and uniform assistance in order to partner with IPS and share its resources. State law requires at least 90% of a charter school’s teaching workforce to be licensed or in the process of obtaining a teacher’s license.
The group also wants all Innovation contracts to be limited to a five-year renewal limit to “ensure safeguards to guarantee accountability.”
The next public meeting of the ILEA is August 20 at the City-County Building.
Amelia Pak-Harvey covers Indianapolis and Lawrence Township schools for Chalkbeat Indiana. Contact Amelia at apak-harvey@chalkbeat.org.
