Carmel Clay Schools
Common Legislative Interests

Carmel Clay Schools’ legislative goal for the next two years is to partner with our legislators and their colleagues by being a credible resource from the field on the matters related to lifelong learning. We offer our support to develop initiatives to improve upon what Indiana’s Constitution describes as our “general and uniform system of Common Schools.” We also offer to be a resource to help minimize unintended negative financial or organizational consequences that inevitably occur when implementing even the best-intended policy. 

Here are some specific examples of issues we have identified and offer our help:

• ESSA Compliance:  In regard to ESSA compliance, we offer both common and unique perspectives. As a large district with various needs, we see how accountability should have many factors. We are also proud to be a high-performing district and can share how we should be evolving policy to celebrate our success.
   
• Deregulation:  We know we have a common interest in keeping our school systems efficient and keeping our resources focused on the classroom. We are particularly interested in deregulating mandates such as teacher trainings.
   
• Dispute Resolution:  Disputes in a child’s education are inevitable. We must continue to update the system of resolving those disputes so they are not an unnecessary drain on time and resources.
   
• Public Question:  We are the first district to utilize the tool the Indiana General Assembly provided through a school safety referendum. We also see how that dovetails with other tools of local governance. We are well-positioned to provide you with perspective on improving upon the “public question” approach to education funding.
   
• Student Support Services:  We have positive and active collaboration with our local, regional and state wrap-around service providers and would like to see more clearly defined avenues to assist the needs of our students and promote school safety.
   
• Accrual Accounting:  Our district is one of the “pilot” public entities being required to transition to accrual accounting practices.
  We are concerned about the expense and time necessary for that transition and would like to revisit this mandate.

We believe together we can best serve our children and make Indiana a destination where families and educators will want to live, work, and take pride in their local schools. Education can certainly be an economic engine for the State. We are proud to be an example of that for our community. 

We offer to communicate with you at any time by contacting our Superintendent, Dr. Michael Beresford. His contact information is listed below. He welcomes the opportunity to discuss education policy with you as your schedule permits.