AN EDUCATIONAL REVOLUTION IN INDIANAPOLIS · P1 An Educational Revolution in Indianapolis David Osborne December 2016 AN EDUCATIONAL REVOLUTION IN INDIANAPOLIS · P2 DECEMBER 2016 An Educational David Osborne Revolution in Indianapolis INTRODUCTION Our urban school systems In an increasing number of cities, they are being replaced by 21st century systems, in which struggle because so many of the central administration does not operate their students live in poverty, all schools and employ all teachers. Instead, it steers the system but contracts with others but they also struggle because to row—to operate many of the schools. The they were designed a hundred steering body, usually an elected school board years ago, for an industrial and appointed superintendent but sometimes a mayor or appointed board, uses charters and society. contracts to open schools that meet emerging student needs. If they work, it expands them and replicates them. If they don’t work, it replaces them. Every year, it replaces the worst performers, replicates the best, and develops new models to meet new needs. The result is continuous improvement. This new formula—autonomy, accountability, diversity of school designs, and parental choice—is simply more effective than the centralized, bureaucratic approach we inherited from the 20th century. Cities that embrace it, by expanding charter schools but also by treating more district schools like charters, are transforming the AN EDUCATIONAL REVOLUTION IN INDIANAPOLIS · P3 lives of their students. New Orleans, which has innovation network status. All have independent 92 percent of its students in charter schools, boards organized as 501(c)3 not-for-profit is the fastest improving city in America.1 organizations; all are outside the teachers’ union Washington, D.C., with 46 percent in charters, is contract; and all use IPS school buildings. 2 close on its heels. Denver, Memphis, Cleveland, A Midwestern “flyover city,” Indianapolis deserves Newark, and Camden, New Jersey, are all close attention from education reformers. moving in the same direction. Though other cities have their own versions Thirty districts belong to a network of “portfolio of “innovation schools” or “pilot schools,” only districts”—so called because they manage a Indianapolis has given them the full autonomy portfolio of traditional and charter schools— and accountability charters enjoy. which share what they have learned about what The city’s charters, which outperform IPS’s works and what doesn’t. traditional public schools, now educate more Indianapolis has recently emerged as one of than a third of all public school students in the leaders. It is sometimes said that cities the district, while innovation network schools other than millennial hotspots such as Boston, already educate another 10 percent. Within New York, Washington, D.C., New Orleans, and another year or two, those two sectors Denver cannot attract the talent necessary to combined will surpass 50 percent. build a large, vibrant charter school sector. But, MAYORAL AUTHORIZING IN INDIANAPOLIS for the past decade, Indianapolis has given the In 1999, when Bart Peterson ran for mayor, lie to that argument. It has the only mayor in the Indianapolis was a Rust Belt city that had country who authorizes charter schools, thanks lost much of its industrial base. A series of to Democratic Mayor Bart Peterson’s efforts to Republican mayors had pursued creative push through the state’s charter law in 2001. economic development efforts, but the city It is sometimes said that cities struggled to keep its middle class. Peterson other than millennial hotspots such knew he needed much stronger public schools as Boston, New York, Washington, to attract and keep residents, so he campaigned D.C., New Orleans, and Denver in support of a charter law. Teresa Lubbers, a cannot attract the talent necessary Republican state senator, had introduced six to build a large, vibrant charter previous charter school bills, all of which had school sector. But, for the past failed. She came up with the idea of giving decade, Indianapolis has given the the mayor authorizing authority, so Peterson lie to that argument. teamed up with her. The combination of a Democratic mayor of the state’s largest city and Today it is innovating again: Indianapolis Public a Republican legislator finally broke the logjam. Schools (IPS) is authorizing “innovation network schools”: district schools with performance Peterson put a young staffer, David Harris, in contracts and full charter-style autonomy. Some charge of his new charter office, and Harris put are charters, some are startups, and some are in place a rigorous process to approve charters. existing IPS schools that have converted to When Republican Greg Ballard defeated AN EDUCATIONAL REVOLUTION IN INDIANAPOLIS · P4 Peterson after two terms, some were concerned With the exception of a handful of schools, that the political transition would undermine the charters in Indianapolis are homegrown— chartering. But the only Peterson staffers Ballard another fact that contradicts the view that cities kept on were in the charter office. During his lacking millennial appeal cannot build vibrant two terms, which ended in January 2016, he charter sectors. A key reason is The Mind Trust, increased the number of charters from 16 to 39, founded in 2006 by Mayor Peterson and David while closing seven.3 Harris as a kind of venture capital outfit for the charter sector, to raise money and recruit talent. The Mind Trust convinced Teach For America (TFA), The New Teacher Project (now TNTP), and DAVID HARRIS Stand for Children to come to Indianapolis, in part by raising money for them. Since then TFA has brought in more than 500 teachers and 39 school leaders (the latter through its Indianapolis His successor, Democrat Joe Hogsett, Principal Fellowship);8 TNTP’s Indianapolis continued the bipartisan support. Today the Teaching Fellows Program has trained 498 mayor authorizes 35 schools on 40 campuses, teachers;9 and Stand for Children has worked with six more authorized to open in the fall of to engage the community, to educate parents 2017. By last year they served about 13,600 about school reform, and to spearhead students.4 The Indiana Charter School Board fundraising for school board candidates. The also authorizes seven schools in the city,5 while Mind Trust has also raised millions of dollars Ball State University authorizes two, one of and offered start-up space, grants, and other which is a virtual (online) school, with students help to eight nonprofit organizations and 17 new from all across the state.6 Within the geographic schools, with more to come.10 boundaries of IPS—which covers most but In recent years Indiana’s charter law has been not all of Indianapolis—about 14,000 students ranked number one in the country by both the attended charters last year, compared to about National Association of Public Charter Schools 30,000 in non-chartered IPS schools. Another (NAPCS) and the National Association of Charter 2,339 attended six charter high schools for School Authorizers. adults. Hence, K-12 charter students made up close to a third of all public school students Last March NAPCS rated the state’s charter within IPS’s boundaries—or about 36 percent, sector—roughly half of which is in Indianapolis— if you count the adult charters.7 To this day, no the second healthiest in the nation, after D.C.’s.11 other mayor in America authorizes charters. And the mayor’s office is highly regarded as an authorizer. It issues annual performance reports To this day, no other mayor in on each school, tracking 27 different measures, America authorizes charters. including qualitative evaluations. It does in-depth The city council in Milwaukee has authorized reviews when the charter is up for renewal every about 10, and the mayor of Columbus has the seven years and once in between. Since its authority to authorize but has not used it. founding, it has rejected many more applications AN EDUCATIONAL REVOLUTION IN INDIANAPOLIS · P5 than it has accepted, and it has closed at least they do not get free buildings or 10 schools—usually replacing them with a new local property tax money. Yet, on school by a stronger operator.12 average, mayor-sponsored charter State legislation that passed in 2011 allowed schools outperform IPS schools. private universities to begin authorizing charters, Like most states, Indiana debuted a new set of which led to rapid growth of low-quality schools. standards and a new test in 2015, so student When authorizers with high standards moved proficiency rates dropped precipitously. The to close failing charters, the schools sometimes state then changed test vendors in 2016, and hopped to a less discriminating authorizer. scores dropped a bit more. So there is no valid (More recent legislation has restricted authorizer way to compare test scores after 2014. On the hopping, requiring schools that lose their charter 2014 exams, 71.2 percent of students at the to wait a year before applying to a different mayoral charters were proficient in English authorizer.) The mayor’s office, The Mind Trust, language arts (ELA), compared with 60.4 of and others pushed hard for other authorizers to IPS students. In math, the difference was 75.4 clean up their acts, and Ball State University, the percent to 65.2 percent. (The same trends largest, closed a dozen schools in three years, continued in 2015, but at lower score levels.16) 13 many of them in the city. Today, Ahmed Young, According to the mayor’s office, the charters who runs the mayor’s charter office, says the outperformed neighborhood schools that state charter board, Ball State, and the Mayor’s students would have otherwise been assigned charter office try to align their work. to by 17 percentage points in ELA and 16 Charters receive roughly $4,200 per student percentage points in math.