State lawmakers are expected to act quickly to secure full funding for schools offering virtual education this year due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Legislators discussed this and more in a virtual conference earlier this month ahead of the 2021 Indiana General Assembly, which begins Jan. 4.
Panelists for K-12 education seminar offered during the 29th annual Dentons Legislative Conference included Sen. Eddie Melton, D-Gary; Rep. Bob Behning, R-Indianapolis; Sen. Jeff Raatz, R-Richmond; and Bart Peterson, former Indianapolis mayor and president and CEO of Indianapolis-based charter organization Christel House International.
Behning, chair of the House Education Committee, said in the discussion that he expects one of the first actions state legislators will take is to secure full funding for virtual students in the pandemic.
Under current Indiana law, students who receive 50% or more of their instruction virtually are funded at 85% of the state’s tuition support funding.
In a school funding formula where dollars follow the student and each pupil carries about $5,700 of basic tuition support, a loss of 15% funding in a district like the School City of Hammond, which operated fully virtual through its entire fall semester, could mean a difference of more than $7 million.
The State Board of Education acted quickly this September to ensure full funding for any student reported in last spring’s student count as in-person but receiving instruction virtually this fall due to the pandemic. However, the board’s action only applied to fall student counts and subsequent action to fully fund remote instruction in an academic year where school corporations across the state have exercised varying forms of virtual or hybrid learning will be decided by lawmakers.
More: State board votes to ensure schools receive full funding for virtual instruction in fall semester
Though schools take count of students throughout the year, lawmakers said last week schools do not share that data with the Indiana Department of Education until the end of the school year, allowing ample time for legislators to find a fix appropriate for the pandemic.
“Obviously with the pandemic, we’re on board and leadership is on board,” said Raatz, who is chair of the Senate Education and Career Development Committee. “We’re going to run a fast-tracked build that’s seamless. There’ll never be a question on the 100% piece.”
Melton, a member of the Education and Career Development Committee, said he is cautiously optimistic following the state’s latest revenue forecast, and that he hopes education funding can be protected at its current levels, or increased, if possible.
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A lengthy report from Gov. Eric Holcomb’s Next Level Teacher Compensation Commission released its findings last week, providing 37 recommendations for increasing teacher pay in Indiana, where average salary places the state 38th in the nation and behind both neighboring Illinois and Michigan, according to the National Education Association.
In the state’s last budget, lawmakers increased K-12 funding by $763 million, which local school boards say they allocated to education resources and teacher salaries.
The Teacher Compensation Commission report brings additional recommendations for action both local school corporations and state legislators can take to reduce spending, redirect funds and generate new revenue for increased compensation, a cause that brought more than 15,000 educators to the Indiana Statehouse just over a year ago.
More: School boards association calls on legislators to maintain public education funding in 2021 session
“We’re past due with the teacher pay increase,” Melton said. “I think we need to just go ahead and make a total commitment. But I understand under a pandemic we have to prioritize things in the state of Indiana and we have to show our teachers that we prioritize them.”
While Raatz and Behning agreed teacher pay needed addressing, Raatz shifted attention to how local districts distribute funds, saying both legislators and school districts must take responsibility for the compensation offered to teachers today.
Behning pointed to the report’s variety of recommendations, suggesting “everything should be on the table.”
“Fortunately, we’re coming off a record investment in K-12 over the last biennium, and we have seen a lot of movement in terms of positive growth in teacher salaries,” Behning said. “We need to keep that momentum moving.”