Muncie citizens speak against bill allowing Ball State to operate schools

MUNCIE, Ind. – Anybody who believed legislation to allow Ball State University to take over Muncie's school system was universally embraced would have been proven wrong Saturday afternoon.

Opponents filled the auditorium at City Hall and lined up to speak against the bill during a town hall meeting lasting more than two hours.

The City Hall Auditorium was at capacity and during those two hours, no one spoke in favor of House Bill 1315.

However, it should be noted the opposition to the bill did not carry over to Ball State itself, with the university being praised for its willingness to help Muncie Schools.

►RELATED: Legislature continues its war on teachers

Rather, complaints from the three Democratic lawmakers representing Delaware County – Reps. Sue Errington, Melanie Wright and state Sen. Tim Lanane, plus Muncie Mayor Dennis Tyler and the public – focused on the loss of an elected school board and the possible loss of teacher bargaining rights. About one-third of the room was filled with teachers, who were asked to stand during a portion of the meeting.

Jason Donati, a Muncie school board member who organized the town hall, said at the end of the meeting that Republican state Sen. Doug Eckerty's office was contacted and he was invited to attend, but he did not hear back from Eckerty's office. Eckerty said on the Senate floor last week there was no turmoil in Muncie regarding this bill.

►ADVANCES: Senate OKs Ball State, Muncie schools bill

There was plenty of turmoil because of it in City Hall. 

Tyler and the three lawmakers, plus Muncie Teachers association President Pat Kennedy and Paris McCurdy, director of Community Diversity Initiatives at Ball State, all agreed the bill will pass. Tyler said the community must come together to be successful.

Tyler and others expressed the strong notion that HB 1315 is a template for the state to privatize other schools, resulting in the loss of representation on school boards and collective bargaining voices for teachers. "Every (school) corporation, every teacher and every parent should be up in arms about this," Tyler said of the bill.

Tyler said he's met with Ball State President Geoffrey S. Mearns and has no worries about Ball State's ability to help the local schools.

►CONTRACT: Muncie Schools emergency manager firm to get $350,000

After the meeting, Ball State issued the following statement: 

"If HB 1315 becomes law, and if the Ball State Board of Trustees accepts the responsibility to appoint a new school board, then Ball State will very promptly offer many more opportunities for people in our community — parents, teachers, and Muncie residents — to offer constructive suggestions for how, working together as partners, we can provide an exceptional educational experience for all the children of Muncie."

With about three days left in this year's legislative session, HB 1315 will be heard in a conference committee at 11 a.m. Monday. Errington, Wright and Lanane are advisers to the committee, but cannot vote.

After the committee works out differences between the House and Senate versions, it must be passed by the House and Senate before it lands on Gov. Eric Holcomb's desk for his signature or veto. No one is expecting a veto.

Lanane said Ball State can do a lot of good for Muncie schools, but he's not convinced it was necessary to take over the schools. He later asked why the bill was necessary. Many sentiments were expressed that not enough time has passed since MCS was declared a fiscally impaired district and the state took over last July for the process to be allowed to fully work.

MCS was taken over because of financial difficulty, not because of academic trouble, and progress has been made to improve the school system's bottom line in recent months.

Errington noted that MCS, before tax caps, received about $20 million a year in property tax revenue. Now it receives about $11 million, and the school corporation is "stuck" with those figures unless a referendum is sought.

Wright said tax caps have been on the books for 10 years, but no studies have been done on their impacts on schools or local governments.

Errington also said she objected to having three appointed school board members, with three who could come from anywhere. She asked who the board members would be accountable to, the university or the community?

The latest version of the bill states that beginning July 1, MCS will be governed by a seven-member board with five members appointed by Ball State trustees from individuals nominated by Ball State's president. At least two members must come from  within the MCS district. 

Also, one member would be appointed by the president from a list of three nominated by Tyler and one would be appointed from a list of three nominated by the city council.

The seats filled by nominations from the mayor and council would become elected positions in the primary election of 2022.

Tyler noted there was nothing in the bill now that covers what would happen if Ball State rejected his nominees.

Other objections about the bill: No sunset provisions. An amendment to end what's been called an "experiment" after nine years was defeated last week.

Kennedy criticized HB 1315 because "it's not what's best for our children." She emphasized she's not opposed to Ball State but noted that on Jan. 17, when the bill was introduced "An anvil dropped out of the sky" for teachers.

Kennedy said a survey was sent to teachers, with 195 responding out of 359 total. There were three choices in the survey regarding HB 1315: This doesn't concern me at all, I'll stay: I'm out of here; I might consider staying if my rights are left in place. "We had 11 teachers who said they would stay," Kennedy said. Of the other 184 responses, half said "I am gone" and the other half said they would consider staying if they can preserve their rights. Kennedy said she's met with teachers and many said they don't feel safe if they don't have rights to due process. 

Kennedy said teachers will work collaboratively, and she hopes Ball State "will do the same for us."

One speaker expressed concerns about the bill and the process in the legislature. "This is the most undemocratic process I've ever seen," he said. "This bill has got me scared." Others members of the public questioned whether the bill was unconstitutional.

Former educator Mike Ryan said the legislation was bad from top to bottom, adding the Republicans in the legislature are taking advantage of Ball State.

Community advocate Mary Dollison said the bill makes a mockery of the democratic process and she called for a class action lawsuit to stop it.

Jeff Ward is a news columnist and opinion page editor. Contact him at 765-213-5850 or jward@muncie.gannett.com.