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With the work of the Indianapolis Local Education Alliance nearly complete, the future of public schools in the city will soon be in state lawmakers’ hands.
When they’re finalized in a Dec. 17 vote, those recommendations could form the basis of a bill for the 2026 session that could affect not just how students get to and from school and which buildings they learn in, but who runs public education in Indianapolis.
Right now, the ILEA is considering two options for school oversight that would dilute the power of the IPS school board. However, the ILEA’s recommendations aren’t binding. And lawmakers on the House and Senate Education committees are introducing their own ideas that could affect who can authorize charter schools, which schools must provide transportation, and whether charter schools will still be able acquire buildings from school districts for $1.
Indianapolis-area lawmakers on education committees say there is potential for improvement in the city’s school bus transportation. But there’s less agreement over what to do about school buildings and who exactly should govern both IPS and local charter schools.
The outcome may have significant implications for other public school districts. Several education laws that initially only applied to Indianapolis eventually expanded to cover other parts of the state.
Rep. Bob Behning, an Indianapolis Republican and chair of the House Education Committee, said he has started a bill with general concepts, but is waiting for the recommendations to be finalized. He also said that he’s pleased with the group’s work.
The committee will meet for the first time on Jan. 7, and likely only three times before bills need to advance to the full House, said Behning, who wrote the law establishing the ILEA during the 2025 legislative session.
Changing who runs Indianapolis schools proves tough issue
With dozens of bus routes in the city, Democratic Rep. Ed DeLaney said he would be open to a unified solution that also provides transportation for private schools that accept school vouchers.
“The focus on transportation and buildings is critical. That’s the right thing to focus on,” DeLaney said.
Democratic Sen. Fady Qaddoura has introduced a sweeping charter reform bill this year that would require charter schools to provide transportation if they accept property tax revenue, among other changes.
But Behning said he would likely not support a requirement that all public schools provide transportation.
Democratic Sen. Andrea Hunley said that if IPS is required to provide transportation, then local charter schools should be too — or else they shouldn’t be considered public schools.
There’s some overlap between questions about who will run schools and how to manage school buildings. IPS works with some charter schools through its Innovation Network. And independent charters can purchase or lease unused IPS school buildings for $1 under Indiana law.
Behning said if there’s ultimately a new building authority that manages school facilities, repealing the so-called $1 law would make sense. He also said a new shared accountability system could be used to determine which charter and district-run schools stay open and which ones close.
“We had a vision that the authority would kind of determine who would get access,” Behning said. “If you are better performing than x, the facility is available to you.”
Hunley said any shared accountability framework shouldn’t be developed with the intent to close schools, but to measure success. In the future, this could be one data point among many in decisions about whether to close a school, she said.
Indiana is also working on a new state school accountability model due to be finalized in January.
Beyond infrastructure, the ILEA seeks to address who would be the ultimate authority over public schools in the city, as well as who would authorize charters.
One proposal under consideration by the ILEA would give significantly more authority to the Indianapolis mayor’s office; the other would create a new board with appointees from IPS, charters, and the mayor’s office. But many details about those and other plans under consideration remain unclear.
So far, groups supporting IPS have sharply criticized those two proposals, while pro-charter groups have offered some praise but said the ILEA should not restrict charters’ autonomy.
The Indianapolis mayor’s office may be the most logical central authority to make decisions for Indianapolis schools, DeLaney said.
But Behning said he would not support recommendations that restrict the number of charter authorizers in the city, or give the mayor’s office sole power to authorize.
Rather than create a new body to oversee IPS and charter schools, Hunley said the IPS board could be reframed as the authority over all schools in Indianapolis. The district already provides transportation and special education services for more than just its directly enrolled students, she said.
Qaddoura said he would reject any bill to dilute the power of the IPS board.
“IPs should be in control of education in Indianapolis,” Qaddoura said. “I don’t want the mayor’s office engaged in making educational decisions on behalf of the city. IPS has an elected board. Parents can use the election to elect those who reflect their values.”
Could a bill changing Indianapolis schools affect other districts?
Most lawmakers on the House and Senate education committees represent areas outside Indianapolis. But there’s a reason for them to take note of an ILEA bill.
In the past, education legislation that initially applied only in Indianapolis — like a requirement that districts share property tax revenue with charter schools — eventually expanded to other parts of the state. A recent survey by the Indiana Coalition for Public Education indicated statewide concern from district leaders over future budgets as a result of this year’s budget bill that included property tax caps and other changes, like the tax-sharing provisions.
Even within the supermajority, there’s some difference of opinion on school choice. One bill last session, House Bill 1136, authored by Republican Rep. Jake Teshka of North Liberty, would have simply dissolved Indianapolis Public Schools and four other school districts But this year, Terre Haute Republican Sen. Greg Goode has gone in a different direction by authoring a bill to exempt more districts from the state’s $1 building law, which has been rarely used or successful in practice.
Both Teshka and Goode sit on their respective education committees. Neither responded to a request for comment on the ILEA’s recommendations by deadline.
Hunley said that the ILEA process was an alternative to the legislature deciding the future of IPS without community input, as lawmakers did with the Union School Corporation.
“In one sentence, in one line, an entire school district was disbanded without hearings, public comment, or public input,” Hunley said. “There’s very real precedent for the legislature to do that.”
Qaddoura said the threat of unilateral dissolution in Teshka’s bill effectively forced IPS to negotiate via the ILEA to maintain power.
“The goal of ILEA was just one step in the master plan of the general assembly to convert Indiana from a traditional public school state to a fully charters and vouchers kind of state,” Qaddoura said. “Choice at the expense of 1 million students is not a choice.”
Hunley said she has heard concerns from school leaders in the area she represents — which includes portions of the Wayne, Warren, and Perry schools. But more districts should voice their opinions, she said.
“Everyone should be watching,” Hunley said. “If a school board loses the power to govern, then every school district in the state should be worried, because they won’t be the last.”
The ILEA will hold a public listening session on Dec. 15 from 12-2 p.m. at the Madame Walker Legacy Center at 617 Indiana Ave. The group will vote on final recommendations on Dec. 17 at 6 p.m., at the City-County Building at 200 E. Washington St.
Aleksandra Appleton covers Indiana education policy and writes about K-12 schools across the state. Contact her at aappleton@chalkbeat.org.
