IPS dumps Teach Plus contract as board members trade barbs
The school board reversed course and dumped a contract with a national teacher program, as angry board members accused each other of playing politics.
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IPS board president calls meeting on Teach Plus contract
The special meeting sends signals that the board could back out of the $750,000 program, which apparently was launched in IPS before the board formally approved it last week.
IPS plans to fight back against charter expansion in 2015
IPS board members met this week to prepare a lobbying strategy for the Indiana General Assembly’s session that begins in January. Chief among their goals: reining in the state takeover process.
IPS candidates raking in funds from near and far
Challengers to incumbents are collecting the largest checks. Big contributors range from the Indy Chamber political action committee to executives with Facebook and LinkedIn.
UPDATE: Education panel delays grades for public schools
The State Board of Education voted Wednesday to delay approving letter grades for public schools because members said they were unsure about the underlying data.
IPS school board candidate says mistake led to plagiarism
Indianapolis Public Schools board candidate Ramon Batts says he regrets representing work from three national advocacy organizations as his own in his responses to a Chalkbeat Indiana survey.
Coming to Indianapolis: a public boarding school?
Indianapolis Public Schools next year could consider bringing a free public boarding school—one of just a few in the country—to the city.
Board ponders new Indiana school ‘A-F’ grades
Indiana education leaders inched closer Wednesday to approving a new system for grading the state's schools, nearly a year after a secret overhaul of the school-grading formula by then-Schools Superintendent Tony Bennett was revealed.
Indiana preschool pilot to begin in 4 counties
Four urban Indiana counties selected for a state-funded preschool pilot program will launch it in early 2015, officials said Wednesday during a day of meetings among state and local officials and educators.
New IPS teacher contract includes performance bonuses
Under the pact approved by the school board Tuesday, teachers who were rated “effective” last fall can earn a $1,500 one-time bonus.
Council Dems say they’re pushing preschool debate into 2016
City-County Council President Maggie Lewis and Vice President John Barth said children could be served next year by the state’s much smaller pilot program, which will reach nearly 800 economically disadvantaged four-year-olds in Marion County.
Indiana could be top state for school vouchers
Preliminary data from the Indiana Department of Education shows 29,437 Indiana children applied for vouchers this year.
Effort to unify Marion County school calendars fails
A major barrier was the fact that different local unions represent the teachers in different districts, and those union contracts didn’t match up in a variety of ways.
Dems block funding for preschool plan as meeting erupts
The Indianapolis City-County Council’s finance committee voted to table funding for Mayor Greg Ballard’s $50 million preschool expansion plan and quickly adjourned a three-hour meeting Tuesday night despite protests.
Data deluge prompts teacher colleges to extend training after graduation
Rattled by new state teacher ratings, the colleges hope to avoid black eyes, themselves.
Ritz asks for money to cover textbook costs
Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction Glenda Ritz is also asking for a 3-percent increase in education spending.
State board settles open meetings suit, admits no guilt
The State Board of Education will pay $15,000 to resolve allegations it used email to circumvent legal requirements.
State OKs rules to license teachers without education degrees
The State Board of Education approved new rules Wednesday for teacher licensing that make it easier for college graduates without education degrees to get jobs in Indiana classrooms.
Lilly Endowment pumps $14.5M into MBAs for school leaders
The endowment hopes to expand educational MBA programs, including one at the University of Indianapolis, to give business skills to more principals and superintendents at Indiana public schools.
Indiana gets 1-year waiver of federal schools law
The U.S. Department of Education on Thursday granted a one-year extension of Indiana's waiver from the federal No Child Left Behind education law after the state resolved concerns.