GOP changes plan to dilute Ritz's power

A Republican plan to restructure the Indiana State Board of Education announced Monday would allow Superintendent of Public Instruction Glenda Ritz, a Democrat, to continue to chair the board until the end of her term while limiting her agency's authority over education policy.

Some critics say the proposal is the latest move by Republican lawmakers to cement their control over the education of Hoosier children and take power from Ritz, who was elected in 2012.

The plan's author, Sen. Travis Holdman, R-Markle, took no testimony on the proposed changes to the plan, which were made two days before the end of the 2015 legislative session.

It's one of a handful of contentious issues lawmakers must resolve by Wednesday. They include a new two-year state budget, a revised school funding formula that would shift money to suburban schools from urban districts and a measure that would loosen rules for the state's casinos.

Ritz and the Indiana State Board of Education, which is appointed by the governor, have clashed since she took office.

Some say proposed revisions to Senate Bill 1 puts the state board on similar footing with the Indiana Department of Education, which is run by Ritz. The proposal declares that the state board is an educational authority, giving it standing with the federal government. The department already is.

Republican lawmakers said codifying the state board as an education authority simply gives it access to federal education data that currently can't be shared by the Department of Education because of privacy laws.

John Barnes, director of legislative affairs for the department, said the department has given the state board the data it has requested in the past and would continue to be compliant in the future.

The proposal also aims to quell some of the dysfunction on the state board by allowing members to choose their own chair instead of falling under the de facto leadership of Ritz. The measure would take effect in January 2017, after Ritz's current term expires. Previous versions of the bill called for the change to occur this year, provoking intense criticism that such a move would disenfranchise voters who elected Ritz.

The proposal also would trim the board from 11 to nine members and would allow for two of them to be appointed by the leaders of the House and Senate.

"This is the unfortunate result of this political dilemma that's been going on the whole time," Barnes said.

Proposed revisions also would give the state board authority over the ISTEP exam.

ISTEP, a mandatory exam that is administered to 450,000 students in Grades 3-8, was the cause of much unrest among parents, teachers and school administrators when it ballooned from about six hours to 12 earlier this year.

"My understanding is that we allow the department to do its job — it has to be approved, and there's oversight with the board, as with everything," Holdman said.

Barnes said it was a mistake to take control of the test away from the Department of Education, because it has experienced staff members who do a fine job crafting the exam. He also said the department and Ritz would cope as best they can with whatever changes are handed down by legislators.

"The truth is the superintendent is a tough lady," Barnes said. "She knows no matter what happens she is expected to keep her head down and get her job done."

Star reporter Tony Cook contributed to this story. Call Star reporter Kris Turner at (317) 444-6047. Follow him on Twitter: @krisnturner.