Are Indiana's Public Schools in Need of Education Deregulation? Education Policy Brief. Volume 4, Number 1, Winter 2006

Overview & Synopsis

In November 2004, the Subcommittee on K-12 Education submitted a report to the Indiana Government Efficiency Commission that outlined recommendations regarding K-12 spending efficiencies. The report was explicit in its warning that the current regulatory structure of education in Indiana was not conducive to improving achievement for all students, a primary goal of a number of state and federal education initiatives, particularly the "No Child Left Behind Act" of 2001 (NCLB). In order to remedy this, the Subcommittee recommended in part that the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) free schools from as much regulation as possible to allow them to focus on the pursuit of academic achievement, shift to a new role of providing support for this endeavor, and align funding to facilitate it. This Policy Brief highlights several federal and state flexibility options currently available to schools, summarizes a survey of superintendents regarding their opinions of the regulatory environment in Indiana, examines deregulatory legislation enacted in other states, and considers whether public education in Indiana would benefit from a round of deregulation. Additionally, policy perspectives are shared by representatives of the Indiana School Boards Association, the Indiana Chamber of Commerce, and the Office of Governor Mitch Daniels. (Contains 41 endnotes, 6 figures, and 3 tables.) [This policy brief was produced by the Center for Evaluation and Education Policy, Indiana University.]