Indiana bill imposing new limits on Gary schools fails

A bill further eroding the powers of the Gary School Board and teachers' collective bargaining rights failed in the General Assembly, giving Democrats a rare victory.

"I didn't see it coming," said State Rep. Vernon Smith, D-Gary. "I kept telling people that God is in control."

Smith, a member of the House Education Committee, opposed House Bill 1315 along with the rest of his delegation, which is dwarfed by GOP supermajorities in both chambers. The measure, which also called for a takeover of the Muncie Community Schools by Ball State University, was considered mean-spirited by some and too far reaching.

For Gary, the bill would have reduced school board meetings to four a year from 12, and allowed for teachers to be fired mid-year in distressed districts with enrollment declines.

The bill also would have allowed the Gary School Board to pick its own replacements and officers. A state takeover law approved last year installing emergency manager Peggy Hinckley, gives her the ability to name replacements and officers, state officials said.

As the hours melted away March 14, with a state-ordered adjournment deadline of midnight, the Senate had voted on all its bills except House Bill 1315. House members had five bills remaining.

"We got word at 11:50 p.m. that Long (Senate President Pro Tem David Long, R-Fort Wayne) wasn't going to hear the bill," Smith said. "It seemed like some things were troubling him."

Meanwhile, House Speaker Brian Bosma, R-Indianapolis, tossed the blame on the Senate for dragging its feet. The Senate adjourned early on March 13, drawing Bosma's rancor.

"Because the Senate adjourned at 3 p.m., that threw House out early," Smith said. "I've never seen the Senate close that early."

There's a possibility Gov. Eric Holcomb could call a one-day special session. Also lost in the chaotic ending was $6 million in additional school safety funding. In such a session, Smith said bills would have to start over with committee hearings.

Gary Teachers Union President Glen Eva Dunham said the bill's language allowing for mid-year layoffs of teachers didn't mesh with Hinckley's pledge to hire highly-qualified teachers.

"It they're just going to get riffed, that won't attract anybody," Dunham said. "It wasn't going to build up Gary."

She said the bill also took away citizens' rights to have elected leaders.

"I think the community rallied around the effort and gave our legislators legs to stand on," she said. "It was an affront to our voting rights."

School Board President Nellie Moore also expressed relief.

"It was an unjust bill," she said. "I was certainly thankful that God prevailed and not allowed it to become law."

Gary and Muncie residents should continue to have the right to elect school board members, she said. Authorizing layoffs would have been "chaotic" and prevented Gary from attracting quality teachers, she said.

"When we do it right, the community is better served when they have a school board that responds to the issues and the challenges that the community as a whole faces," Moore said. "We are a very important piece in that puzzle."

In recent months, Gary had made progress on finances under Hinckley with a plan to tackle its monthly deficit and eliminate millions owed to the IRS, she said.

"I see this as a new beginning for a better relationship with the board and with the management team, as well as the community," Moore said.

Gary Mayor Karen Freeman-Wilson, who opposed the bill, said last year's takeover law should have time to work before changes are made.

"I do believe a sense of fairness and democracy prevailed," she said. "To me, the bill seemed very punitive; just because you can, doesn't mean you should. I just thought it was a bad bill. Those who had ability to deal with that ultimately thought it was a bad bill."

Wirt-Emerson PTA President Eloise Smith said school board meetings were a place for parents to meet, get information and give feedback while Gary is under state control.

"There's daily decisions that are being made about our children," she said. If annual meetings were cut to four, "how many decisions would be made in between that time?"

She believes updates on student achievements at board meetings — like basketball star Dana Evans' run at West Side last year — have waned somewhat this year and she's encouraged board members to be more visible — to tour schools and meet with students.

Monthly meetings are "a way of hearing from all sides, which I like," Smith said. "Hear from the teachers' point of view — employees, staff and parents.

"A lot of times, we don't get the whole story unless we hear it from each other," she said.