News Local/State

Indiana Schools Chief Storms From Board Meeting

 

A meeting that was expected to produce a new plan for grading Indiana schools has descended into chaos when the state's top education official stormed out.

Democratic Superintendent Glenda Ritz abruptly left the meeting of the state school board she chairs when an appointee by Gov. Mike Pence tried to transfer certain student assessment powers from her office to another department.
 
Indiana's "A through F'' school grading formula was investigated after an Associated Press report showed Ritz's predecessor, Tony Bennett, changed the rules last year to raise the grade of a political donor's charter school from a "C'' to an "A."
 
Bennett resigned his job as Florida's schools chief amid the scandal. Ritz and Pence have repeatedly clashed over education policy.