In the 2011 session of the General Assembly, the legislature passed (and I supported) HEA 1074 that effectively changed the state’s school board elections date from the May primary to the November general election. Indiana law also says that school board races are nonpartisan. After what transpired this past general election in multiple counties, nonpartisanship is not present at this time. It is an understatement to report to you that I regret that vote.
As a result of that change in the law, the Indiana State Teachers Association’s political action committee, I-PACE, has contributed thousands of dollars to their endorsed candidates throughout the state. This system seemed to operate smoothly until the pandemic hit, schools closed, online classes began, and many parents became more engaged in their children’s education. That new parental focus created more attention to issues before the local school board which begat agents of change candidates and the growth of political action committees from the perspective of angry and motivated parents.
This chaotic situation has applied significant pressure to all involved, including students, teachers, and school corporation administrators. Clearly, this system as we know it, cannot continue. A commonsense reform would be removal of all campaign funding from the “nonpartisan” school board elections. Such a reform is improbable due to a historic court decision and fear of lawsuits. The Indiana General Assembly has a ripe opportunity, though, to reverse my regrettable vote. Several options exist today.
Option one, all members of school boards be appointed by a third party. This practice has worked incredibly well for Muncie Community Schools. The legislature allowed Ball State University control of Muncie Community Schools in July 2018 to transform Muncie’s education system, which was drowning in $12 million of red ink and unacceptable student test scores. Ball State appointed a blue-ribbon school board and developed a Community Engagement Council who supports the board’s mission by acting as advocate, volunteer coordinator and fundraiser. The hiring of a stellar superintendent in LeeAnn Kwiatkowski completed an innovative administrative framework plan for success. Now, Muncie Community Schools are very proud of their student test scores, and their financial picture is quite positive.
A second option would be to change the membership makeup of today’s school board elections. The school board membership could be made up of three elected seats. One seat would represent teachers, possibly a retired teacher. The other two seats would represent property owners and parents, respectively. All three of these groups should have a voice in school board policy and would have to work together.
A third option is to acknowledge that school board races are, indeed, partisan and treat the election of school board members just like any other elective office. This means Republicans, Democrats and possibly Libertarians would nominate their choice in the spring primary and run in the fall. This would allow all constituents to easily know their board members and hold them accountable. One other benefit of partisan school board elections would be the replacement of a board member due to resignation. Currently, the members of the school board caucus and name a replacement from the community. Changing to a partisan system would provide transparency not present now and convey a quick replacement from the party represented in that seat on the board.
The role of a school board member has become the toughest in government today. Parents, administrators, teachers, and even students want a seat at the table to influence school board members and thus, guide public policy. If school board elections are going to be truly nonpartisan, let us roll the die and eliminate all campaign money. Something must change.
Jim Merritt served in the Indiana Senate for 30 years before retiring in 2020. This commentary previously appeared on indianacapitalchronicle.com. Send comments to [email protected].
