State Prepares for Possible Takeover of Another IPS School
There was only one Indiana school slated for possible takeover by the state this year for failing to meet academic standards for a sixth consecutive year; IPS’ John Marshall Community School. And according to state officials, John Marshall failed to make adequate academic progress and now officials are looking at intervention.
This is not the first time IPS has failed and the state has had to intervene. Last year the state took over four failing IPS Schools: Emma Donnan Middle School and Manual, Howe Community and Arlington Community high schools.
The Indiana Department of Education is expected to announce later this week when it hold hearings on John Marshall. Under Public Law 221, any school that has been deemed as failing for the past five years is subject to state intervention. That intervention can include one of the following options…
- Provide technical assistance to the school.
- Assume total control of school.
- Assign a special team to operate all or part of the school.
- Allow the school to continue to function if it’s making steady progress.
Schools are measured based on student achievement, performance and yearly progress. A school can avoid takeover if its test scores improve by three percent. The exact change in John Marshall test scores was not immediately available, but it is apparent it was not enough to avoid takeover.
The state taking over a school is not a new concept. Since 1999, state law has allowed the DOE to intervene if a school is has been failing for more than five years. This law was passed two years before No Child Left Behind went into effect.
