The Mind Trust awards $1.7M to Indianapolis charter schools

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The Mind Trust, an Indianapolis not-for-profit supporting local charter schools, is awarding $1.69 million to four K-12 and adult charter school networks.

The awards will support charter networks looking to grow existing campuses or open new ones.

“Access to great public education is essential to sustaining a thriving city,” Mind Trust CEO Brandon Brown said in a news release. “These public charter networks are driving transformational progress for students in Indianapolis and our team looks forward to supporting their expanded impact on students and families.”

The grant recipients are:

• Christel House DORS, $240,000: The DORS program, which serves adults seeking their high school diploma, will add a fourth campus on Indianapolis’ northwest side to meet the demand of rising enrollment. The Mind Trust’s funding will support first-year costs of the new campus.
• Circle City Prep, $250,000: The Mind Trust Funding will help Circle City Prep, a K-7 charter school on Indianapolis’ far east side, grow to serve eighth graders beginning in the 2024-2025 school year. The charter is one school year away from adding a second location, according to a news release from The Mind Trust.
• The Excel Center, $200,000: Goodwill of Central and Southern Indiana’s adult education school, The Excel Center, plans to open its 16th Indiana campus this fall in IPS’ former Paul I. Miller School 114. The Mind Trust will support initial costs in the first year. The new campus, three miles from the Community Justice Campus in Indianapolis, will have an additional focus on serving adult who’ve been involved with the justice system.
• Herron Preparatory Academy, $1 million: The Herron Classical Schools network of charter schools opened its Herron Preparatory Academy in fall 2021 and served grades K-3 last school year. The Mind Trust funding will support Herron as it grows to serve students in grades K-8 and as the school expands its facilities.