IDOE Seeks Funding For Pre-K, Tuition Support
Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction Glenda Ritz.
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowThe Indiana Department of Education has submitted its budget request for the next two years. The department says the proposed budget includes, among other items, funding for public and private pre-kindergarten throughout the state and increases in funding for small schools and technology spending.
The budget request also includes a 2 percent increase in tuition support each year for every public school in the state. The IDOE also seeks to eliminate the textbook tax by requesting a $1,000 tax deduction for families to help offset the cost of textbooks, which is currently only available to parents of children in private schools.
"Budgets reflect priorities and there is no greater priority than our children and investments that we need to make in their future," said Glenda Ritz, Indiana superintendent of public instruction. "As Superintendent, I am calling for common sense funding increases for all schools, while also making high-quality, public and private pre-K available to Hoosier families in every community."
Ritz’s office says the increase in tuition support equates to $455 million in new support over the next two years, compared to the 2016-2017 academic year and the cost of pre-K education throughout the state will cost an estimated $147 million in the first year.
The IDOE says if the budget request is approved, it would be the largest investment in education in Indiana’s history.