Is it possible to provide high-quality, accessible transportation for every public school student across IPS and the charter school sector? That question took center stage at the most recent meeting of the Indianapolis Local Education Alliance (ILEA). Meanwhile, a collective of more than 50 Indianapolis schools (the vast majority of which are public charter schools) have banded together for a new pilot program to share transportation and facility resources.

Practically every school in Indianapolis faces some transportation challenges, even if the particulars differ. Rising costs. Staffing issues. Vendor dependability and quality. The list goes on.

How a New Pilot Program Could Address Pain Points in School Transportation

As the ILEA considers more structural recommendations, I’m intrigued by the possibilities raised by this new pilot program being organized by TogetherEd (formerly the Center for Innovative Education Solutions), is a nonprofit that provides different types of operational support to public charter schools. TogetherEd submitted a formal application to the state, which will be approved or declined sometime in October. Other locations across the state can apply to join a pilot program in their region as well, though it’s unclear yet if any will.  

For starters, I’m pleasantly surprised by the widespread buy-in from Indianapolis charter schools that TogetherED achieved for the pilot (you can view a map listing all of them here). This bodes well. Not necessarily because I expect the pilot to solve transportation issues at all these schools. But I do believe it provides fertile ground for experimentation and discovery that can improve how these schools deliver transportation. A possible win-win, if you will. 

But a pilot like this tends to sound good in theory yet be trickier in application. So what might it lead to in practice? I’ve dug through everything I can find about the pilot (including the legislative framework that gave rise to it) to offer a few possibilities related to both transportation and facilities.

Transportation Pilot Possibilities

Addressing Workforce Issues

Driver shortages have long plagued schools of all types. Simply put, there’s no path forward to a better transportation system that doesn’t include hiring more and better drivers and bus monitors. Creating a stronger pool of drivers and monitors is certainly in the pilot’s wheelhouse–and I would say essential to making real progress.

Shared Transportation Assets

Every Indianapolis charter school has their own transportation system. That’s not news to you of course. But there’s certainly room for schools to coordinate assets for athletics, extracurriculars, and other things. I can imagine some kind of digital platform to both provide visibility into what’s available and allow coordination. For example, School A has vans or mini-buses available on certain days? Maybe School B reserves them from time to time. And so on.

More Flexible Transportation Options

Long gone are the days where kids got to school in only three ways: walking, getting dropped off by their families, or taking a yellow bus. Certainly, that combo does continue to work for some schools. But it doesn’t always cut it anymore. It’s hard to say exactly what an expanded transportation model might entail (though IPS in recent years added public transit to the list for high schoolers as a fourth main option for getting to school). But I expect this pilot to result in a lot of experimentation between and among schools to find out what a more innovative paradigm might look like. 

Better Service for Homeless and Vulnerable Students

Homeless students, those in the foster care system, and others face particular barriers to getting to school. Traditional transportation options often don’t accommodate student transience. Since these students often need unique and individualized support, there’s room for innovative thinking around the use of taxi and rideshare services to make sure these students can more regularly attend school.

Facilities Pilot Possibilities

As important as improving transportation is, there are just as many opportunities on the facility side. So I’m glad the pilot (and the ILEA) are aiming to tackle both. Here’s a few things that stand out to me about the pilot’s potential around facilities.

Shared Purchasing Power

Just think of Costco. Bulk buying is cheaper. Schools might pitch in together to purchase new furniture, lab supplies, sports equipment, etc. 

Shared Use of Space

Schools can and should offer different things. At the same time, the fragmentation and individualization inherent to our landscape means there are plenty of schools whose facilities don’t have things like gyms, computer or science or robotics labs, or maker spaces. I can imagine the pilot paving the way for schools to share these spaces with each other. 

Joint Capital Improvements

The pilot could create opportunities for multiple schools to jointly pursue public or philanthropic funding to support major capital projects. They could even tie requests back to a commitment to sharing spaces. 

Facilities Authority

Other proposals going around in the education reform space have already called for a single authorizer for local charter schools, whose main priorities would be to manage transportation and facilities for all the schools under its purview. The pilot is one way to test the feasibility of this, which could in turn simplify the way many charter schools manage facilities and reduce costs in the process.