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| 2024 Candidate pledge from the Indiana Coalition for Public Education website. |
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
"[Candidate for Indiana Governor, Jennifer McCormick]...wants to place limits on the state’s private school voucher initiative: The program grew to encompass more than 70,000 children in 2023-24, a 31% increase from the year before. The state allocated $439 million in tuition grants to private parochial or non-religious schools last year — up from nearly $312 million the year before.
McCormick said the program, which might have been intended for lower-income children, is often utilized by white suburban families and is too expensive." -- Quoted in Diane Ravitch's blog, Indiana: Vote for Jennifer McCormick for Governor
ELECT PRO-PUBLIC EDUCATION CANDIDATES
Vic’s Statehouse Notes #389 – Candidate Pledge
Ask your local candidates to sign the Public Education Pledge from the Indiana Coaltion for Public Education.
From Vic Smith, Indiana Coalition for Public Education
This election could determine the survival of public education in Indiana. The plan to give ESAs to all parents in a “universal voucher” system has already been presented by Senator Mishler. The disastrous consequences of universal ESAs were detailed in the previous Statehouse Notes #388.
To survive, public education must have strong support from more legislators. This fact is the focus of a recent opinion piece written by ICPE board member, Dr. Tony Lux.
A “Candidate Pledge” to support public education is found on the website of the Indiana Coalition for Public Education.
JENNIFER MCCORMICK FOR GOVERNOR
Indiana: Vote for Jennifer McCormick for Governor
Jennifer McCormick wants to protect Indiana's public schools.
From Diane Ravitch
Jennifer McCormick was the last elected state superintendent of schools. She switched parties because of the Republicans’ hostility to public schools.
She is running for Governor of Indiana against Senator Mike Braun, who is a far-right Republican. Braun and his running mate, an evangelical extremist, want to get rid of public schools.
The 74 reports:
U.S. Sen. Mike Braun, a conservative Republican, is still ahead in the state’s gubernatorial race but his lead among Indiana voters over Democrat Jennifer McCormick has shrunk in recent weeks.
Polling released this week by the Democratic Governors Association shows Braun just three points in front of McCormick, 44% to 41%. That’s a dropoff from the Sept. 17 results of an Emerson College Polling/The Hill voter survey that had Braun with roughly 45% of the vote and McCormick with 34. Libertarian candidate Donald Rainwater also picked up more support but less dramatically so, going from 5.8% to 8%.
Indiana has not elected a Democratic governor since 2000 and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump holds a comfortable 14 percentage point lead, 57% to 43%, over Democrat Kamala Harris, according to an ActiVote poll released Tuesday.
PUBLIC DOLLARS GOING TO RELIGIOUS SCHOOLS
Only One True God: How Religious Schools Use Taxpayer Dollars to Promote Their Extremist Ideology
How our tax dollars are used...
From Thom Hartmann in Milwaukee Independent
Five Republican-controlled states are in the process of letting vouchers ghettoize their entire public-school systems. As The Washington Post noted:
“Billions in taxpayer dollars are being used to pay tuition at religious schools throughout the country, as state voucher programs expand dramatically and the line separating public education and religion fades.”Meanwhile, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson, flies an “Appeal to Heaven” flag outside his official congressional office that, since 2013, has been the semi-official logo of a militant arm of charismatic Christianity involved with January 6th. Supreme Court Justice Sam Alito flew a similar flag outside his summer home.
Another man flying that flag is outspoken Catholic evangelist Leonard Leo, who now controls over a billion dollars and helped run the process that selected Trump’s picks for the Supreme Court as well as hundreds of federal bench nominees. As ProPublica pointed out in a story about the man that remade the American judicial system:
“Leo is a major supporter of the [Catholic Information Center], and its unabashed projection of political power aligns with the central role of religion in Leo’s political project.”
LOCAL NEWS
Fort Wayne Community Schools seeks buyer for vacant southwest parcel
From the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette**
Fort Wayne Community Schools is seeking potential buyers for land it has owned for more than 20 years on the city’s southwest side.
The board agreed Monday to sell the vacant property at the northwest corner of Sandpoint Road and Ardmore Avenue to the person with the highest and best qualified offer.
The district doesn’t anticipate any future need for the site, which is smaller than an acre and requires ongoing maintenance, officials said.
Online property records indicate the district bought the land for $85,000 in March 2003. At that time, the tract was immediately north of Elmhurst High School, which closed at the end of the 2009-10 academic year. FWCS sold that site for $600,000 seven years ago to Hanson Aggregates Midwest, which operates nearby Ardmore Quarry.
Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library coming to Allen County; ACPL fundraising goal met
From WANE.com
After just a few months, a campaign to bring Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library to local kids has brought in enough funds to move forward with the reading program.
The Allen County Public Library announced Monday it has met its $100,000 fundraising goal for the campaign, which was launched in June. That means the Imagination Library could be implemented in the coming months.
The country music icon’s program provides free books to children up to age 5, encouraging literacy starting at a young age. Kids around the globe who are registered in the program get books in the mail each month.
There are already over 1,500 children on the waiting list for Allen County’s program. Families can join the list on the Imagination Library website.
Indiana marching bands are heading to the 2024 BOA Super Regional. Find out who'll compete
From IndyStar
THE LATEST: See who made finals at the Indianapolis Super Regional here.
For the next few weeks, it's marching band season at Lucas Oil Stadium (except when it's Taylor Swift season, that is).
Marching bands in Indiana competed last week for a spot in the ISSMA Semi-State competition, which takes place Oct. 26. This week, there's a two-day Bands of America Super Regional bringing high school performers from around the region (and a few from beyond) to the stadium.
More than 110 bands also will come to downtown Indy in mid-November for the 2024 Bands of America Grand National Championships.
**Note: The Fort Wayne Journal Gazette is behind a paywall. Digital access, home delivery, or both are available with a subscription. Staying informed is essential; one way to do that is to support your local newspaper. For subscription information, go to fortwayne.com/subscriptions/ [NOTE: NEIFPE has no financial ties to the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette]
†Note: NEIFPE's In Case You Missed It is posted by the end of the day every Monday except after holiday weekends or as otherwise noted.
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