Indiana Non-Public Education Association Legislative Liaisons Orientation & Training December 4, 2013

INPEA Who we are Who we serve Our focus

Why Legislative Liaisons? Building a grassroots infrastructure Raising our collective voice Engaging and mobilizing private school communities for private school issues Supporting new legislative initiatives and protecting past successes

Engaging in Public Policy Advancing our Mission Protecting our Independence Advocating for School Choice Engaging in State Legislation and Regulation Processes Supporting legislation that benefits private school students Opposing legislation/regulation that could be harmful to our schools and students Providing a face and voice for Non-public schools and issues in Indiana

LL: Roles and Responsibilities Work with School Administration on Public Policy Issues Educate & Engage your local school community in public policy issues affecting private schools Communicate INPEA public policy issues/alerts to your school community (parents & faculty & staff)

LL: Roles and Responsibilities Help educate your parent community about particular public policy issues(e.g. parent meetings, school newsletters) When necessary and possible encourage involvement in statehouse rallies or legislative committee hearings Share the private school perspective on issues with your elected representatives or public school representatives (write/call/attend hearings) and encourage others to do the same. Set school goals for public policy engagement Develop a communication plan for public policy issues/alerts

Legislative Liaisons School Head

ADVOCACY

Legislative Victories Choice Scholarship Program Voucher Program: Expansions (Improvements) Sibling access F school access Special education access Program Growth : 3919 students & 16 million dollars : 9300 students & 38 million dollars : students & 78 million dollars (est) Scholarship Tax Credit Improvements HUGE – No prior year public requirement

The Choice Scholarship Program 2013 number provided by DOE as number of applications received

The Choice Scholarship Program

School Choice Messaging Pointers School Choice is not about private schools; its about families and children and giving them opportunities to be successful. School Choice will not destroy public schools. In states with active school choice programs, public schools have improved. Private Schools that participate in school choice programs will not lose their autonomy. School Choice Programs can save the State money. INPEA & School Choice Indiana can be of assistance when dealing with media.

2013 Legislative Priorities 2014 is not a Budget Year Protect against increasing regulation! Protect and Expand the Voucher & Scholarship Tax Credit Legislation Protect our recent advances! Add a Kindergarten entry point in the voucher program Encourage support of early childhood education funding (e.g. preschool) in ways that include private providers

2013 – 2014 INPEA Initiatives Protect against increasing regulation/reporting Support Choice Schools to ensure quality with an increasingly diverse student demographic Support Choice Schools with implementing special education initiatives National School Choice Week (Jan. 26 -Feb. 1) School Choice Day at the Legislature: Feb. 12 Improve Non-Public School Grassroots Efforts Improve Legislative Liaison Program Encourage schools to set engagement goals Be prepared to protect and engage!

Important clarifications Legislation vs. Regulation/Rule vs. Administration Legislation occurs in the General Assembly Rule for education law is developed by either the State Board of Education or Department of Education Administration is the responsibility of the designated state agency (in many cases IDOE for education issues but not always)

Immediate Homework Develop (if needed) a legislative communication plan with your school head for the 2014 General Assembly Session. How to get alerts to the school community Plan ways to educate parents about the importance of engaging in public policy as well as about specific issues Assessing level of parent engagement Work with school head to set school goals for legislative engagement (e.g. participation in events/activities, number of legislator contacts)

Partner Organizations School Choice Indiana (HEGN) Indiana Catholic Conference Friedman Foundation American Federation for Children Great Schools And others

2014 HEGN Field Managers Regions and Contact Info Jon Callaway Northern Indiana Kent Martin Central Indiana Sarah Milligan Southern Indiana

Web sites INPEA INPEA Legislative Action School Choice Indiana Friedman Foundation School Voucher Information Indiana General Assembly

Indiana Faces of Choice This year in Indiana there will be well over 20,000 faces of Choice!

INPEA Indiana Non-Public Education Association John Elcesser Executive Director 1400 N. Meridian St. Indianapolis, IN