IPEC Meeting June 22, 2026: Referendum Rate Approved at 0.372
Indianapolis Public Education Corporation (IPEC) Meeting – June 22, 2026
The Indianapolis Public Education Corporation (IPEC) held its regular meeting on June 22, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. (evening session). The primary focus was a public hearing and board vote on a proposed operating referendum levy question for the November 2026 ballot. After extensive public comment and board deliberation, IPEC unanimously approved a four-year referendum at a rate of 0.372, expected to generate approximately $87.8 million annually for all public schools within IPS boundaries. The board also approved additional appropriations, an internal control policy, and received updates on the executive director search and performance framework work.
Consent Calendar
- Approval of Minutes: The minutes from the previous meeting were approved unanimously.
- Internal Control Policy: A resolution adopting the State Board of Accounts internal control policy was approved unanimously.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Public Hearing on Additional Appropriation: No members of the public spoke. The hearing was closed, and the appropriation was approved.
- Referendum Public Comments (over 20 speakers):
- Support for the referendum: Many speakers, including parents, educators, and community leaders, expressed strong support for the referendum, emphasizing that all public school students (IPS, innovation, and charter) deserve equitable funding. Notable speakers: Sierra Jones (principal, Avondale Meadows Middle School), Maggie Lewis (City-County Council President), Jeffrey Harrison (Indy Chamber Board Chair – explicitly endorsed the 0.372 rate), Patrice Duckett Brown (community organizer), and several parents and teachers.
- Concerns and requests: Some speakers raised concerns about taxpayer burden, transparency, and accountability. Monica Shellhammer (teacher and union vice president) asked for teacher representation and a moratorium on new schools. Dr. Brian Duart (education policy researcher) criticized the context of the referendum but supported the four-year term. Several speakers requested clear reporting on how funds would be spent, translated materials for non-English speakers, and protections for families under financial duress.
- Final public comments (after referendum vote): Additional speakers thanked the board and reiterated support for transparency and equitable funding.
Discussion Items
- Additional Appropriation Resolution: IPEC approved the appropriation of funds allocated by the General Assembly (House Enrolled Act 1423) to enable spending. The resolution passed unanimously.
- Referendum Presentation and Board Deliberation:
- The acting executive director presented the recommended rate of 0.372 for a four-year term, noting it was a compromise between higher and lower options. The rate would generate ~$87.8 million per year, split evenly between IPS and charter schools (60 charter schools signed up). The presentation highlighted the need for IPS to make additional cuts ($20 million) and pursue efficiencies, including phasing in in-kind service payments from innovation schools and seeking state relief for special education and English learner funding.
- Board members discussed the trade-offs. Commissioner Duke Starr moved for a 42-cent rate (to keep IPS whole at current revenue), but the motion failed. A subsequent motion to adopt the 0.372 rate was seconded and passed unanimously after comments from commissioners acknowledging the difficulty of balancing community needs and taxpayer burdens.
- Executive Director Search Update: The acting executive director reported that 36 applications were received, initial interviews are being scheduled, and a finalist will be presented to the mayor.
- Performance Framework Work Group: One meeting held; next meeting to be scheduled. A status update is due to the Indiana General Assembly by August 31, 2026.
Key Outcomes
- Approved additional appropriation resolution (unanimous).
- Approved operating referendum at a rate of 0.372 for four years (unanimous). The ballot question will ask voters to approve a property tax increase of approximately $20 per month on a home valued at $150,000 (the average home value in the district).
- Approved internal control policy (unanimous).
- Next meeting: July 22, 2026, at 4:00 p.m. (location to be confirmed).
Meeting Transcript
Good evening. Thanks to everybody for being here. We are going to begin because I think we have a big agenda, full agenda tonight. We want to make sure that we give everybody who has signed up to speak an opportunity to speak and not get out of here too late. Before we do our regularly scheduled meeting, we are going to have a public hearing on consideration of additional appropriation. Under Indiana law, public bodies like IPEC must appropriate funds before we may spend them. The General Assembly allocated funds for IPEC operations and IPAC has provided notice of the intent in today's meeting to appropriate the funds. We're now taking public comment on the appropriation of funds. At this point in the meeting, we are not discussing or taking comment on anything else. So please save your comments on the referendum or any other topic to the later parts of the meeting. You will have your chance to speak for sure. But we want to open up the floor now for people who want to speak about the appropriation before we officially start the IPEC meeting. So Roman, I will turn it over to you to give us our instructions and start to call people forward to speak. And while we're waiting for Roman, I just want to take a moment to acknowledge that we have the president of the City County Council here today. Thank you. We're honored by your presence and the superintendent of the Indianapolis Public Schools. So thank you both for being here. Okay. Each speaker will be limited to three minutes. Speakers will be called in the order that the responses were received through the public comment sign-up form that close today at noon. All speakers must be physically present at the meeting to provide their public comment. No proxy speakers or stand-ins will be allowed. So I'll call up two names at a time and I'll do my best to pronounce each name correctly. We appreciate your patience and understanding. When your name is called, please come forward and state your name. And as always, each speaker will have three minutes to provide a comment. The timer will be displayed on the screen, and a sound will indicate when your time has ended. When the timer goes off, please conclude your remarks. First, we have Dante Dyson, followed by Deontay Grimes. We haven't started the meeting yet, so we will do that just as soon as we start the meeting. He's in the elevator. Is Franco Starz here? Costell Martin. Floor Maldonado. These parents want to speak on the referenda. Okay, we can put that. We can put them in the federal at the very end. Okay, we've got like Beyonce and also Dontia. Dante. Okay. Is Chloe Henson here? She's another one for the reference. Girling Thomas. Referendum. Okay, so all of them will be last. All right. So we have no speakers here on the appropriation of funds. Yes. So I will now entertain a motion to close the public comment period. Motion to close public comment.
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