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Public commenters urge fully elected IPS board, moratorium on new charters, and transparency in charter tax spending
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Summary
More than two dozen community members used the Alliance's public comment period to press the Indianapolis Local Education Alliance for a fully elected school board, a pause on new charter openings inside IPS boundaries, stronger accountability for charter spending of property tax dollars and improved transportation for families.
A broad cross section of parents, teachers, community advocates and neighborhood leaders used the Indianapolis Local Education Alliance public comment period on Tuesday to press the Alliance toward recommendations that would preserve a fully elected Indianapolis Public Schools board, impose a moratorium on new charter openings within IPS boundaries and require transparency in how charter schools spend locally raised property‑tax dollars.
Speakers also demanded improved transportation and uniform accountability standards for district, innovation and charter schools.
"Democracy only works when all members answer directly to voters," Anh Nguyen, who identified herself as an immigrant and a parent with family ties to Indianapolis Public Schools, told the alliance. "This is why I strongly oppose any proposal to make our school board partially appointed."
Multiple speakers echoed the call for a moratorium on new charters inside the IPS boundary. "We don't have the students to fill them or the budget to operate them," said Kate Scott, asking the Alliance to recommend a pause on new charter openings while roughly 9,000 seats remain unfilled in the district, a number cited by public commenters.
Other recurring themes in public comment:
- Accountability and financial transparency: Several speakers asked the Alliance to require charter schools that now receive property‑tax dollars to publish detailed accounting of how those funds are spent. Mary Anne Schlegel Ruger said one charter used more than $154,000 of property‑tax receipts to operate buses that run outside IPS boundaries while providing only public‑transit passes to students living inside IPS.
- Transportation: Parents and teachers pressed for systemwide transportation that gives families reliable access to schools across sector types. Several callers described late buses, long walks, and students arriving late for standardized tests because public‑transit connections failed.
- Special education and equity: Advocates and education professionals asked the Alliance to consider how policy changes would affect students with disabilities. A community leader cited concerns about enforcement of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and how charter‑driven system changes can leave students with the greatest needs behind.
- Local control and skepticism of privatization: Several speakers accused private philanthropic groups and political actors of pushing governance changes that would remove elected oversight. Speakers urged the Alliance to prioritize locally elected decision making.
A number of speakers identified themselves as parents of IPS students, teachers in IPS schools, or community advocates. Groups delivering petitions or collective testimony said they had collected more than 2,000 signatures from IPS residents supporting a platform the callers described as "Together We Thrive," which calls for fewer authorizers, a single shared performance framework and expanded transportation access.
The Alliance did not vote or adopt formal policy during the public‑comment period. Staff said written comments submitted online will be posted to the Alliance website and distributed to members.
