We’ve had some great wins, but Indiana educators need more from legislature
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As the 2023 session of the Indiana General Assembly begins wrapping up, I’m proud of many of the bipartisan education bills that have passed through the chambers. As a retired educator myself, I know firsthand that the work legislators do has a lasting impact on classrooms throughout the state.
That’s why I’m proud to have co-authored House Bill 1528, a bipartisan bill that will expand the Next Generation Hoosier Educators scholarship program.
Indiana is currently facing a teacher shortage, with roughly 1,400 open teaching positions throughout the state. Not only does this mean qualified educators are sorely needed, it means children suffer the impacts of overcrowded and underfunded classrooms.
This bill removes the requirement that recipients of the Next Generation Hoosier Educators be currently employed by an Indiana school corporation, opening up the opportunity to so many more prospective teachers. Through the scholarship, they will be given the tools they need to successfully lead a classroom and prepare future generations of Hoosiers for academic success and success outside of the classroom.
While teachers play a huge role in a child’s academic success, the opportunity for extracurricular activities also enhance a child’s academic achievements as well as personal and emotional growth.
House Bill 1382, which I also co-authored, provides grants to eligible robotics competition teams throughout the state. The legislation also has a new specific provision to ensure that children with disabilities on robotics teams are accommodated. Not only does involvement in these programs foster an appreciation for science and technology – which will do wonders for the Indiana workforce – but it allows children to learn about teamwork and leadership.
Students in Lafayette are already benefiting from a robust robotics program by participating in the FIRST Indiana Robotics program. Students on the McCutcheon and West Lafayette High School robotics teams are headed to the national robotics championship in Houston later this month.
Representatives from FIRST Indiana Robotics testified in support of this legislation earlier in the session, and I was deeply impressed with both the technological and interpersonal skills the students possessed. I truly believe that if we can get more children involved in extracurricular activities, whether it be a robotics team, band, choir, sports or any other activity they’re passionate about, we can help to cultivate a generation of Hoosier children who have leadership skills and the ability to work as part of a team. They also can develop skills they can transfer to a profession after graduation. I am pleased to have been a co-author of this bill, and I look forward to seeing its practical impacts on Hoosier students.
This session, I also had the pleasure of co-sponsoring Senate Bill 72, which will allow the state Department of Education to gather data on which schools are currently providing cursive writing instruction. I have been a champion for cursive writing instruction for several years, and am very interested in examining the results and working out how we can ensure more Hoosier children are being taught this very important skill.
While there have been several successes for Indiana schools during this legislative session, there is still quite a lot of work to be done. I’m disheartened that Indiana Republicans have removed the requirements for school corporations to have discussions with teachers about class sizes, curriculum and public safety issues. When teachers and administrators have the ability to discuss these issues and advocate for themselves, everyone benefits. Next session, I look forward to continuing conversations about raising teacher pay and fully funding Indiana schools.
Like in any other area, creating progress for Indiana schools can be slow work. While I’m realistic that a lot of hard work lies ahead of us in the legislature; I’m very proud of the improvements to education we’ve been able to pass this year.