By Fritz Edelstein
November 17, 2003

The Richard M. Fairbanks Foundation awarded a $1.6 million grant to the city of Indianapolis' Greater Indianapolis Progress Committee. The purpose of the grant is to increase the number of high-quality, mayor'sponsored charter schools that operate in the city. Mayor Bart Peterson is the only mayor in the country with authority to charter schools.

The grant will fund the Peterson's new "Seed & Lead" initiative. The purpose of this initiative is to increase the quality of charter school applications. The mayor has already approved nine charter schools and five are currently operating. Three more will open in September 2004 and one in 2005.

"Charter schools are offering Indianapolis parents even more quality educational opportunities within the public school system," Peterson said. "This significant grant will help us attract bright and talented leaders and teachers, and replicate successful proven programs in our city."

There are two components to this initiative. "Seed" is an aggressive program designed to replicate highly successful school designs and curricula in Indianapolis. The three charter schools opening in 2004 will be replications of previously existing successful school models in other cities. This includes a new KIPP Indianapolis based on the KIPP Academy design and curricula. The role of the mayor's office will be to identify model school designs, evaluate the designs, utilize "seed" funds to engage and include the community in the decision making process, fund local surveys of need and demands, and provide start up grants for new charters.

The "Lead" component will have the mayor's office partnering with a recognized leadership recruitment and development program to create a pipeline of outstanding educational entrepreneurs to open new charters in the city. Two successful leadership training programs are already working with Indianapolis. These are New Leaders for New Schools and the Fisher's Fellows program. About $600,000 of the grant will be used to implement this component.

"Leadership is critical to a successful school, and research and our own experiences tell us that dynamic, well-trained school leaders are vital to the success of our charter schools," said Peterson.