Now more than ever, our city needs strong leadership. That includes within our public school system, which is heading in a better direction than in the past but continues to leave many students and families in our neighborhoods behind.
My name is Will Pritchard, and I’ve spent the past 20 years working and volunteering in community development in Indianapolis.
I’ve helped neighborhood-based groups develop new housing and retail, raise funds to improve infrastructure and build capacity to take on many of our city’s most challenging problems. I know firsthand that the quality of our schools—real or perceived—is integral to making our neighborhoods safe and welcoming to all.
Strong neighborhoods have access to great schools, but for too many years, some of our communities have experienced achievement gaps based on race and income, declining test scores and clusters of schools that simply aren’t meeting students’ needs.
I went to public school, and my kids are in elementary school at IPS. Our family has made a long-term commitment to this city and our public schools. Yet we often feel left out of key decisions: The district seems to move forward with big changes without parental input and engagement.
That’s why I’m running to be a member of the Indianapolis Public Schools Board of Commissioners this November.
We must do better at one of our city’s and nation’s greatest challenges—educating our kids. More than that, we must restore faith and confidence in our public school system. With a talented new superintendent and so many amazing educators, we need to celebrate our successes, our diversity and our potential to be the best public school system in the state.
In the next few months, I look forward to hearing your thoughts, and I hope you will share my enthusiasm for the future of IPS. Please join me in supporting great public schools in Indianapolis and vote for me on November 3.