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Big changes await Indianapolis Public Schools parents, students, and teachers on the first day of classes Aug. 1.
There will be changes linked to the district’s ongoing overhaul of grades and curriculum known as Rebuilding Stronger. There will be new leadership at George Washington Carver School 87 after an uproar over the alleged abuse of a student, as well as a new IPS student safety task force stemming from that controversy. And there’s even a new dress code.
Read more about those and more of what’s new for IPS below.
Rebuilding Stronger broadens access to languages, Algebra I, music
IPS is currently in the final phase of implementation of the Rebuilding Stronger plan. The new strategic vision adopted by the district in 2022 has closed underutilized schools, reconfigured grades, and expanded educational opportunities. The district believes those changes will increase equity across the district and address declining enrollment.
This phase executes the separation of combined middle schools and elementary schools, trains teachers and school leaders, and moves new furniture and musical instruments into applicable schools, according to a report given to the school board in June. The coming school year will be the first time students experience the grade reconfigurations since the Rebuilding Stronger plan was introduced in 2022.
With the changes, all middle school students will have access to a world language and Algebra I, and they’ll be able to participate in band or orchestra.
Parents have expressed reservations about the plan since it was proposed. Some have considered pulling their children from the district’s traditional schools in response to the grade reconfigurations.
The grade divisions mean that previously closed schools will reopen as middle schools with grades 6-8. The new schools include Broad Ripple Middle School and Howe Middle School, with Purdue Polytechnic North High School also being located at Broad Ripple.
Families must opt into transportation
As IPS moves to four broad enrollment zones so families have more schools to choose from, it’s changing the transportation policy from automatic to opt-in. IPS hopes the new policy will make the transition into enrollment zones — part of the Rebuilding Stronger plan — more efficient.
Families must opt into transportation during the school registration process each year.
Eligible students who attend a school outside of their enrollment zone may take the bus for 2024-25 only, and only if they are already receiving transportation. District officials said they have decided to grant such exceptions this year so students experience less instability.
Students get a less restrictive dress code
Students in all grade levels will be able to follow a looser dress code, with fewer restrictions on the style and color of shirts and pants.
The previous code required elementary and secondary students to wear solid-color collared or turtleneck shirts and limited the types of pants, including no jeans.
The dress code changes come with the school board’s focus on addressing inequities in the district and eliminating barriers to classroom learning.
In addition, out-of-school suspensions will no longer be a punishment for dress code violations. Instead, the school will work with the student and parent or guardian to address clothes that don’t comply with the code.
Some clothing restrictions remain in the new code. Students must still wear sleeved tops that cover the midriff, bottoms that reach fingertip length and do not have tears, and closed-toe shoes.
The code allows head coverings worn in observance of a student’s religion, but prohibits bonnets, durags, hats inside the building, and wave caps. It also prohibits certain types of offensive dress, such as clothing with pornagraphic images, hate speech, or gang or hate group associations.
Task forces to assess student safety, school culture
There will be two new task forces, one focused on student safety and one on schools’ emotional health and culture, that IPS announced in the wake of a lawsuit alleging that a former teacher encouraged the physical assault of a School 87 student last year.
The suit says a viral video featured in April media reports shows that Julious Johnican encouraged a “fight club” style of discipline in his classroom. Johnican resigned from his position in November 2023.
The district created the task forces in response to concerns about how school leaders handled the abuse allegations. Parents said the school failed to notify them of the abuse and repeatedly dismissed complaints about student safety prior to the incident.
The task forces will “find out the temperature in every building,” board member Hope Hampton said in April, “so we don’t find it out another way.”
School board backs restorative justice in student discipline
In May, the school board passed a resolution encouraging educators to adopt a restorative justice approach instead of traditional discipline when possible.
Restorative justice acts as an alternative to zero-tolerance policies by prioritizing peer-to-peer understanding and proactive conflict management.
The peer mediation program at Harshman Middle School is an example of how restorative justice works at the school level.
“These practices focus on repairing harm, fostering understanding, and rebuilding relationships,” the board’s resolution said.
Plant-based proteins, global cuisine added to menus
Students will find new items on the lunch menu, according to a Monday press release from IPS, including meat alternatives and globally inspired dishes.
The elementary and middle school menus will add teriyaki chicken with fried rice and shredded beef and salsa roja tamales. The high school menu will include General Tso’s and honey Sriracha chicken fried rice bowls, chicken and cheese Crispitos, and build-your-own ramen bowls, per the press release.
Vegan and vegetarian students have additional protein options, such as Impossible Chicken Nuggets and a plant-based beef alternative for nachos.
Students in all grades will have greater access to nutritional foods.
Elementary schools will participate in the USDA Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program, Director of Foodservice Dena Bond said, so students can eat a fresh produce snack every day. Middle school students can use the vegetable and toppings bar. And high school students can eat Indiana-grown fruits, vegetables, grains, and dairy products through the Local Food for Schools Cooperative Agreement Program, the release said.
Haley Miller is a summer reporting intern covering education in the Indianapolis area. Contact Haley at hmiller@chalkbeat.org.
