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16 Indiana schools named National Blue Ribbon winners. See the list

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16 Indiana schools named National Blue Ribbon winners. See the list


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Six Indianapolis-area schools were among 16 in Indiana that made it on the National Blue Ribbon Schools list this year for academic excellence and work in closing achievement gaps.

This year’s list, released on Monday, showcases the work done by the students and teachers in those schools, said U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona in a news release.

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“The 2024 National Blue Ribbon Schools are raising the bar for our nation’s students, serving as models for effective teaching and intentional collaboration in their schools and communities,” Cardona said. “As we celebrate their achievements, let us look to these schools for inspiration as we champion education as the foundation of a brighter future for every child.” 

What does it mean to be a Blue Ribbon School?

The National Blue Ribbon Schools program was established in 1982 and is a yearly recognition of the schools that show overall academic success and/or make significant strides in closing achievement gaps between different student groups.  

The U.S. Department of Education looks at all schools — private and public — and evaluates them based on student assessment data, student subgroup performance and graduation rates.

Schools are nominated by Indiana’s Secretary of Education or the Council for American Private Education and must meet certain qualifications like student performance data, student demographics and student subgroup performance.

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Schools then submit applications detailing their school culture, programs, assessments, instructional practices, professional development, leadership, family and community involvement.  

Up to 240 schools are nominated each year.

A list of Indiana winners from previous years is available on the Indiana Department of Education’s website.

More School News: Indiana students could see more testing this school year. See what your school is doing

Indianapolis-area schools that made the 2024 Blue Ribbon list

The Indianapolis schools that made the list were nominated for the “exemplary high performing schools” category.

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Keep up with school news: Sign up for Study Hall, IndyStar’s free weekly education newsletter.

Other Indiana schools on the 2024 Blue Ribbon list

  • Ladoga – Ladoga Elementary School, South Montgomery Community School Corp.
  • Montgomery – Barr-Reeve Middle/High School, Barr-Reeve Community Schools Inc.
  • Munster – St. Thomas More School, Diocese of Gary.
  • Pine Village – Pine Village Elementary School, MSD Warren County.
  • Shipshewana – Meadowview Elementary School, Westview School Corp.
  • Wadesville – Saint Wendel Catholic School, Diocese of Evansville.
  • West Lafayette – West Lafayette Elementary School, West Lafayette Community School Corp.
  • Evansville – Oak Hill Elementary School, Evansville Vanderburgh School Corp.
  • Floyds Knobs – Saint Mary of the Knobs Catholic School, Archdiocese of Indianapolis.
  • Hebron – Porter Lakes Elementary School, Porter Township School Corp.

Contact IndyStar reporter Caroline Beck at 317-618-5807 or CBeck@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter (X): @CarolineB_Indy.



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Indiana AG seeks execution date for death row inmate convicted in 2010 killings of two children

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Indiana AG seeks execution date for death row inmate convicted in 2010 killings of two children


Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita on Wednesday asked the Indiana Supreme Court to schedule the execution of death row inmate Jeffrey Weisheit.

The filing came just eight days after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to intervene in Weisheit’s case.

He was sentenced to death in 2012 for the murders of 5-year-old Caleb Lynch and his 8-year-old sister, Alyssa Lynch, who were killed in a Vanderburgh County house fire in 2010.

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In a verified motion filed with the state’s high court, attorneys for the state argued that Weisheit has exhausted all available avenues of review and that no active stay remains in place to prevent his execution.

The state requested that the court set an execution date 30 to 45 days after granting the motion.

“For more than 15 years, the family of these two innocent children has waited for justice,” Rokita said in a Wednesday statement. “A jury lawfully convicted Weisheit and sentenced him to death. That sentence has been upheld through every level of the judicial system. It is long past time to carry out the sentence.”

Weisheit killed the children during the early morning hours of April 10, 2010, according to court records. Prosecutors said he “hog-tied” Caleb and placed railroad flares in the boy’s underwear before igniting them and fleeing the home. Alyssa was also inside the residence when the fire spread through the house, killing both children.

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Authorities later apprehended Weisheit in Kentucky after a high-speed chase. Court records indicate he threw a knife at pursuing officers before being taken into custody.

A Vanderburgh County jury convicted Weisheit in 2012 of two counts of murder and recommended a death sentence after finding multiple aggravating circumstances, including that both victims were younger than 12 years old. The trial court subsequently imposed the death penalty.

The case has spent more than a decade moving through state and federal courts.

The Indiana Supreme Court upheld Weisheit’s convictions and death sentence in 2015. His request for post-conviction relief was later denied, and the state’s high court affirmed that decision in 2018.

Weisheit then turned to federal court, filing a habeas corpus petition in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana in 2020. The petition was denied in 2022, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit affirmed the decision last August before rejecting a rehearing request the following month.

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The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the case on June 8.



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Indiana mom killed protecting son during Facebook Marketplace robbery, 18-year-old suspect arrested

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Indiana mom killed protecting son during Facebook Marketplace robbery, 18-year-old suspect arrested


A heroic Indiana mother was killed when she stepped in between her son and an 18-year-old gunman who had pulled a firearm on them during a Facebook marketplace sale.

Jean Gragg, 40, and her teenage son were selling a watch to prospective buyer John Ford during an arranged meet-up on the front porch of their Edison Park, Ind., home near the University of Notre Dame on June 10, South Bend Police said.

Gragg’s son had planned to sell the watch to Ford just before 10 p.m.

Jean Gragg died days after she was shot in the head during a robbery while her son was selling a watch he listed on Facebook Marketplace on June 10, 2026. GoFundMe

Family friends said the exchange was common for Gragg’s son, who has made sales through Facebook Marketplace “many times before.”

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Ford allegedly pulled out a handgun while he was inspecting the timepiece.

“When Jean stepped in to support her son, the man went over the edge,” family friend Debra McKinley wrote on a GoFundMe.

Gragg, an office manager for H&R Block, wedged herself between the two teens and pushed the suspected gunman away and off her property.

Ford allegedly fired multiple shots at Gragg, who was walking up her driveway back to her home as her horrified family watched.

She was struck in the head by one of the rounds.

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John Ford was charged with murder in the deadly shooting that killed Jean Gragg on June 10, 2026. St. Joseph County Jail
Gragg was remembered as a caring person who loved her son up to her death. GoFundMe

Nearby security cameras captured Gragg falling to the ground as Ford ran away, according to court records viewed by WSBT.

Gragg was rushed to a local hospital in critical condition before she was declared brain-dead. She was taken off life support by 6 p.m. on June 13, McKinley said.

“My superhero,” Gragg’s son told WNDU.

Gragg was remembered as a traveler who enjoyed spending time with her son and friends.

“She was a nurturer, if anyone close to her was sick, you could count on her to take excellent care of you,” her family said in an online obituary. “Jean was a dedicated, wonderful mother, very loving and caring, always putting her son first down to her very last breath. (He) was her whole world.”

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Gragg was rushed to a local hospital in critical condition before she was declared brain-dead. She was taken off life support by 6 p.m. on June 13. GoFundMe

Ford was tracked down to an apartment complex 2 miles from the scene of the shooting.

Police had also found the suspected gun dumped over a fence at the complex.

Ford allegedly admitted to shooting at Gragg during an interview with police.

He has been charged with murder, attempted murder and robbery in the shooting.

Ford is being held at the St. Joseph County Jail without bond, according to police.

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‘My whole body did not feel right’: Indiana residents protest data center projects

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‘My whole body did not feel right’: Indiana residents protest data center projects


Protesters in Merrillville, Indiana, gathered outside a private event for Indiana Gov. Mike Braun to voice concerns about data centers. Fox Chicago’s Bret Buganski reports live from the demonstration.

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