Decoding Dyslexia Indiana urges early screening, warns proposed accountability rule could reward pushing out low-performing students

Billy Ottensmeier, a staff attorney for the Indiana Department of Education, opened a public hearing at 11 a.m. on Jan. 5, 2026, to accept comment on LSA Document No. 25-370, a proposed rule concerning Indiana's new school accountability formula. Ottensmeier told attendees the session was held pursuant to Indiana Code 4-22-2-26, that notice was published in the Indiana Register on Dec. 3, 2025, and that department staff would not be answering questions during the comment period.

Cheryl Clemens, with Decoding Dyslexia Indiana, thanked staff for revisions to the draft framework but said she remained "concerned that we're creating a system that rewards schools with a higher letter grade for getting rid of students whose test scores pull down the school's grade." Clemens urged safeguards to prevent schools from removing or otherwise excluding low-performing students to improve accountability scores.

Clemens said parents may not grasp that a lower-rated school could be advancing students faster than a higher-rated one, and she recommended adding universal screening as a student-success indicator in kindergarten through second grade. "This would not only allow parents and community members to understand the level at which students are entering school and see the rate of growth over the lower grades," she said, arguing that an early-grade indicator would incentivize timely, evidence-based reading intervention.

Clemens told the department the state is already paying for universal screening and that waiting until third grade to measure outcomes is "too late." She also raised a procedural concern about which students are counted in accountability ratings, noting that "currently, a student must be enrolled in school for only 162 days to be considered an eligible student and have their test scores counted towards the school's accountability rating," and argued that schools that lose students during the year should bear some responsibility: "They are the ones who failed the child."

On the measure of "work ethic," Clemens criticized relying solely on attendance. She noted some students miss school because of therapies or health needs and recommended awarding points for participation in extended school year services and for attendance in outside tutoring programs such as Indiana Learns to better reflect students' effort and growth.

Ottensmeier closed the hearing at 11:30 a.m., noting there were no in-person public attendees and that all comments received, including written submissions, would be provided to the board for consideration. No formal action or vote was taken at the hearing; it was a public comment opportunity on the draft rulemaking.