Kennedy Wants More Money for IPS
I just read a guest editorial in this morning’s paper by Democratic Mayoral candidate Melina Kennedy. And after reading it, once again it would be nice if her campaign and I could put aside our differences and chat because I would love to know why any sane person would advocate more money for Indianapolis Public Schools.
In her op-ed Kennedy says
…81 percent of students in IPS are poor enough to qualify for a free- or reduced-price lunch, which makes it clear to me that we need to do more, not less, for these students.
She also goes on to say…
Shifting public dollars away from the students who need these resources the most is not the road map to a better future for our children. We need a fair formula that strives to provide fair and balanced opportunities for all children to succeed.
Where do I begin?
First of all, IPS gets more money per student than just about any school district in the state. Second, under the new funding formula, the money follows the student. How much more fair can you get? Perhaps Melina thinks it was fair that under the old funding formula the state paid for students for up to three years after they had left a school district. Remember the “deghoster” formula that had taxpayers forking over about $94 million for 16,000 kids who didn’t exist?
Indianapolis Public Schools have gone from 39,000 students down to about 32,000 over the last seven years. And by some unofficial counts they lost another 3300 this school year. Is Melina saying taxpayers should pay for those students who no longer exist?
And since money is a finite resource, is she also saying that money should be taken away from other school districts to pay for IPS? I’m sure the taxpayers and parents in Wayne, Franklin, Warren, Washington, Pike, Lawrence, Speedway, Decatur, Perry , Beech Grove or who attend charter schools will appreciate that.
She also doesn’t address the fact that several IPS high schools have been performing so badly that the State is moving in to take them over next year.
In addition, her op-ed fails to call on any accountability by the school district, nor does it challenge the outrageous statements by Dr. Eugene White that he will illegally bar students who live in the school district from attending if they transfer out and try to come back after the September count day.
You would think that someone whose claim to fame was being the head of economic development would pen something a little more thoughtful. Maybe she did and I’m just missing something here. Maybe one day we can sit and chat and I can figure out exactly what she meant. But until then, I interpret her words as wanting to take money from other school districts and give to the monument to Murphy’s law know as Indianapolis Public Schools.
