Indiana schools chief sees positives in budget pain

Tony Bennett calls it a “reset.” And he’s not averse to pushing the button.

Indiana’s superintendent of public instruction sees the current K-12 education funding crunch, resulting from recession and the state’s divorce of schools from property tax support, as not just a challenge to overcome but also as a chance for change. He sees it as a context for reforms.

“This economy is creating a context for many discussions that have never happened before in education,” Bennett said during an interview Thursday at The Herald-Times.

Gov. Mitch Daniels announced in December that state revenue shortfalls compelled a $298 million cut to K-12 districts statewide, and the pain is palpable locally. The Monroe County Community School Corp. passed personnel and programming reductions totaling $5.8 million last week and Richland-Bean Blossom schools have $728,521 in cuts pending.