Too many public school referendums lost on Election Day | Opinion
Watching the results come in on Election Day, I was grateful to see over two-thirds of Indiana's school referendums pass with ample community support, including in Indianapolis. But I was also devastated that many others across the state failed . It’s looking like 12 school districts will enter a maelstrom of fiscal uncertainty. I know what’s next: cuts, consolidations and closures. Teachers will lose their jobs. Students will lose access to programs, transportation and maybe school itself. And shrinking communities will lose an anchor that moored them from the storm. Who is responsible? People will argue that districts are inefficient, though there’s very little evidence of that where voters said no. The reality is that state and federal dollars haven’t kept pace with the rising costs of education, including diesel for buses and food for school meals. Indiana has dropped from 15th to 38th in the nation in per-pupil funding. Cuts to Medicaid have also hammered schools, as it provides the core revenue stream for school nurses, psychologists, occupational and physical therapists, special education technology and mental health services. If schools are going to continue offering those services, they have to find a way to pay. So why doesn’t the
