When it comes to school board races in Indianapolis this year, the Indianapolis Public School Board’s hotly contested race has garnered most of the attention, but nine other Marion County districts have candidates on the ballot, too.
Only Speedway doesn’t have a school board race this year. The county’s eight townships all will ask voters to choose candidates on Nov. 4, along with Beech Grove. Together, the townships, plus Speedway and Beech Grove, enroll nearly 100,000 students, more than three times the roughly 30,000 students IPS enrolls. Many have similar challenges to IPS, if on a smaller scale: growing poverty, students who move frequently and children with barriers that can depress their test scores, such as kids who are still learning English as a second language or who have special education needs.
Chalkbeat offered all of the county’s school board candidates the chance to fill out a short survey telling about themselves and their reasons for running. (For more on the IPS candidates and their races, check out our election tracker.)
Candidates up for election or re-election this year stressed their experience and longevity in their districts and communities. Although only a few were classroom teachers, many attended school in their districts and sent children or grandchildren through the ranks as well. Learn more about the candidates and their thoughts on key issues in their districts by checking out the short primers listed below. (Stories will be linked as they are published. All of them will be published by Friday, Oct. 31.)
- Lawrence Township
- Perry Township
- Pike Township
- Warren Township
- Washington Township
- Wayne Township
- Franklin Township
- Decatur Township
- Beech Grove