The superintendent of the Gary Community School Corp. presented the district’s reasons for opposing House Bill 1136 at the city council’s meeting Tuesday. Gary Common Council members have expressed concerns with the bill since it was introduced.
“We just exited a seven-year takeover,” Superintendent Yvonne Stokes said Tuesday evening. “We’ve tried to make our students and community feel the change. We believe in change, … and we are doing what it takes to support our students.”
House Bill 1136 — filed by Rep. Jake Teshka, R-North Liberty — calls for a school district to dissolve if more than half its students in the legal settlement area attend school elsewhere by the fall 2024 student count data. GCS is one of five school districts targeted, including Indianapolis Public Schools.
If legislation is passed, nine Gary schools would turn into charter schools, including Jacques Marquette Elementary School, Gary Middle School and West Side Leadership Academy. Gary has eight charter schools, two of which operate as dropout recovery schools.
Councilman Darren Washington, D-at large, said GCS staff were invited to give insight on how the bill, if passed, will impact the district. Washington authored a resolution against the bill, which was unanimously passed at the council’s Jan. 21 meeting.
“House Bill 1136 does not provide the Gary Community School Corp. with the ample time to demonstrate recovery efforts to rebuild its enrollment,” Washington read from the resolution on Jan. 21. “The Indiana State Legislature should allow the Gary Community School Corp. a monitored seven-year grace period to present evidence showing continued increase in enrollment and significant advancement in academics …”
On Tuesday, Washington called the state legislation “extremely unfair,” especially as GCS comes out of state control. Washington and other council members, including Parliamentarian Linda Barnes Caldwell, D-5th, have encouraged constituents to voice their concerns to state legislators.
In October, the state looked at GCS’ enrollment, Stokes said, and found that about 12,000 students live within the district’s boundaries, but only about 4,000 students attend GCS. The count only reflects two months of attendance this school year, Stokes said, adding that the district has had hundreds of other students enroll since.
House Bill 1136 targets schools with the lowest scores on standardized tests, Stokes told the council.
Stokes also said she isn’t against charter schools, but she wants parents to still have an option to send their children to public schools. The superintendent also read a statement that she released in January following the introduction of House Bill 1136.
“It has only been six — now seven — months since the Gary Community School Corp. was released from a seven-year state over,” Stokes read Tuesday. “During this seven-year time period, there was an exodus of thousands of students from the district. Since local control was re-instated, we have been laser-focused on increasing enrollment and maintaining financial solvency, while enhancing curriculum and improving the overall educational experience for children.”
Chelsea Whittington, GCS chief of public and community relations, said the district is working to recruit students, and it’s been focused on financial stability, academics, professional development and having qualified instructors at its facilities.
Whittington said the district is welcoming to new families and continues to communicate what’s being done as best as they can.
Both Stokes and Whittington thanked the council for their interest in House Bill 1136 and continued to encourage constituents to speak out against the legislation.
