IDOE Appoints Staffer To Help Low-Performing Schools In Gary

Kyle Stokes / StateImpact Indiana

A turnaround operator has run Theodore Roosevelt College & Career Academy in Gary since the state intervened in 2012. Many schools in Gary are at risk of this.

A member of the Indiana Department of Education staff will spend the year in Gary working with Gary Community Schools, which is labeled as “high risk” because of consistently low ISTEP+ scores the last few years.

Daniel Brundidge, a member of the IDOE’s Outreach Division of School Improvement staff, will serve as the liasion between the Gary Community School Corp. and the IDOE.

The IDOE said in a statement released last week that Brundidge “will be based on site and work alongside Gary Community Schools staff to oversee the implementation of federally funded programs while also serving as the chief liaison between the Department and Gary.” The statement went on to say the department hopes the partnership “will improve collaboration between the Department and Gary, while also focusing on the turnaround principles of effective leadership, school climate and culture, and effective instruction.”

Brundidge will work full time with the school corporation over the next school year.