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Teachers and parents urge action on funding and oppose SB 287 at Hammond school board meeting
Summary
During public comment at the March 4 meeting, teachers and community members urged calls to legislators to protect school funding, asked the board to approve policies, and urged public participation; Anita Cox specifically urged opposition to SB 287 and teacher solidarity actions.
Several teachers, parents and community advocates used the School City of Hammond public-comment periods on March 4 to press the board on school funding, board policy and upcoming legislation.
Anita Cox, a teacher at Hammond Central and a member of the Hammond Teachers Federation, asked the community to join teacher solidarity actions ahead of the school day and to contact state lawmakers to oppose SB 287, which she described as a bill proposing partisan school board elections. "Please support your teachers as they walk into school together in solidarity to protect our kids and protect our livelihoods," Cox said, urging calls to Representative Wesco and Representative Jackson and offering a hotline number she provided.
Cindy Murphy urged the board to conduct and publish surveys of parents and teachers about bell times and to release updated student-testing data for the current year. "Where's the winter data? Where's the fall data?" Murphy asked, saying the public needs midyear data to evaluate changes.
Dr. Michaela Spangenberg of the Indiana Coalition for Public Education said she stood with teachers and parents calling for continued funding and urged the board to approve meeting agendas at the start of sessions to improve transparency. "It's good to hear constructive feedback from parents, students, and teachers," she said, while advising the board to check statutory responsibilities rather than campaign materials when citing duties.
Other speakers, including Wanda Pucket and Reena Horan, thanked the board for recent school events and urged increased community participation at board meetings.
The comments touched on several recurring themes: concern about proposed changes to school-board election rules, requests for clearer and more timely student performance data, and calls for parents and the community to support teachers during solidarity actions. Board members acknowledged the remarks during announcements and reiterated thanks to principals, staff and volunteers for Black History Month activities.
The meeting proceeded to routine business after public comment.
