UIndy is partnering with three Marion County districts: centrally located Indianapolis Public Schools (enrollment 35,257) the Metropolitan School District of Wayne Township to the west (14,917 students), and the Metropolitan School District of Decatur Township to the southwest (6,131 students).
These diverse urban districts all have half or more of their students receiving free or reduced-price lunches. The districts have redesigned high schools to provide students with exceptional opportunities to engage in learning in an environment where they connect with caring adults. UIndy’s Center of Excellence in Leadership of Learning has been supporting IPS and Decatur Township in developing project-based New Tech schools, and with Wayne Township to develop an Early College model.
All partnering schools districts have strong leadership, experienced teacher mentors, and established relationships with UIndy’s teacher education programs.
Indiana’s largest school district, Indianapolis Public Schools, serves more than 35,000 students a year, with 79 percent of them on free or reduced-price lunch programs. The district has nearly 80 schools. IPS is responding to the challenges facing inner-city schools and working to transform and improve education in Indianapolis. The district has many sixth-through-12th-grade specialty schools offering a rigorous college-preparatory curriculum. Its five high school campuses are home to 19 small schools focused on rigor and individualized learning. The district has adopted an aggressive math and science initiative that emphasizes student mastery of mathematical and scientific concepts, requires three years of math and three years of science classes at the high school level, and includes teacher development programs to help support this initiative.
The MSD of Decatur Township, where 49 percent of the students receive free or reduced-price lunches, is home to four elementary schools and an intermediate school as well as Decatur Middle School, Decatur Central High School and Decatur Discovery Academy. Decatur Central High School features small learning communities, each with a distinct focus. One of those is a New Technology High School, a national model characterized by interdisciplinary, project-based learning augmented by technology. Decatur Discovery Academy is a charter school designated as an Expeditionary Learning School—a national model that “promotes rigorous and engaging curriculum; active, inquiry-based pedagogy; and a school culture that demands and teaches compassion and good citizenship.” Students engage in interdisciplinary learning expeditions in which they do original research.
The MSD of Wayne Township, where 64 percent of the students are receiving free or reduced-price lunches, has 11 elementary schools, two 7th/8th grade schools, Ben Davis Ninth Grade Center, and several high school options: Ben Davis High School, a traditionally structured school which received a National Award for Excellence in Education from the U.S. Department of Education; Ben Davis Extended Day School, which offers evening classes and adult refresher coursework; and Ben Davis University, which has a partnership with Vincennes University to offer students dual high school and college credit.
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