Indiana
Should DCS, schools be able to keep information from parents? Indiana Senate bill says no
Indiana is housing children in DCS offices. One stayed over a month.
More than 160 abused and neglected children spent at least one night in a DCS office from Jan. 1 to June 30. One office housed 8 children at once.
The Indiana Senate passed a bill Monday that aims to keep government entities like the Indiana Department of Child Services and school districts from interfering in parents’ rights, despite concerns that it could end up hurting the privacy rights of LGBTQ youth.
Approved by a 44-5 vote, Senate Bill 143 would forbid government entities from denying parents access to certain information about their children, and from “advising, directing or coercing” a child to withhold that information from parents.
Bill author Sen. Liz Brown, R-Fort Wayne, said the bill “gives parents the rights in Indiana which most of us thought we already had.”
“We’re just making sure that government does not constrain or in any way restrict a parent’s right to direct the upbringing, religious instruction, or health of their child,” Brown said. “You need a compelling governmental interest to interfere with that relationship.”
The bill makes an exception for protecting the health and safety of a child, and for active criminal law enforcement investigations involving a parent.
It also wouldn’t allow parents to decide that their children could access procedures that are banned in Indiana, such as abortion, gender-affirming care or female genital mutilation.
“A parent can’t say they now have that right,” Brown said. “We’re not going to allow a parent to supersede us on mutilating their child or (abortion).”
The bill now moves on to the House for consideration and it still has a lengthy process to becoming law. A similar legislative effort to enshrine parental rights died in the past, though this year’s bill has support from both Republicans and Democrats.
However, there is also some bipartisan opposition, with three Republicans and two Democrats voting against it in the Senate on Monday.
Sen. Aaron Freeman, R-Indianapolis, said he worried about the bill’s unintended consequences, though he “strongly agrees” with its goals. Just five years ago, he said, the state decided at the outset of the Covid-19 pandemic that it had a compelling interest to close businesses and restrict travel. He doesn’t want the government to create more hurdles for parents in the future.
“It was a compelling government interest back then,” Freeman said. “I don’t want to make it easier for government to say, well, because it’s a compelling government interest, you have to get your children vaccinated. I don’t want to make it easier for the government to act against parents.”
Youth privacy rights vs. ‘the long arm of the state’
Some advocates have raised concerns about how the bill would impact transgender children and their families.
Christopher Daley, executive director of the Indiana ACLU, said the legislation “encroaches on the privacy rights of minors throughout the state.” The organization opposed a similar bill in the past, stating then that the legislation “could have been used to force a teacher to ‘out’ an LGBTQ student to their parents.”
But Brown, the bill’s author, said that wasn’t a concern.
“I do not believe that minors have any significant privacy rights,” Brown said, “particularly that are being invaded by this bill.”
Sen. Mike Gaskill, R-Pendleton, also was motivated by the issue of transgender youth, but supported the bill. The legislation “really hits home” where here’s from, he said.
His constituents lost custody of their child because of a disagreement over the child’s transgender identity, Gaskill said, in a case that made national news as the parents sought a ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court. But the high court ultimately declined to hear the case.
“They lost it to the long arm of the state,” Gaskill said. “This is long overdue.”
‘Parents need these kinds of protections’
Still, much of the testimony surrounding the bill related to alleged failures by DCS.
Indiana parents Grant and Myranda Phillips, for example, testified that they temporarily lost custody of their two children for nearly a year, and were kept from their children’s medical records, after they said DCS incorrectly alleged abuse of a two-month-old infant.
It turned out instead that the child was suffering with an undiagnosed connective tissue disorder and DCS eventually dismissed the case, the family said. They have since filed a lawsuit.
“We’ve been healing as a family since getting our children home, and we’re trying to use this horrible situation to bring attention to the things that are going on here in Indiana,” Grant Phillips said. “The parents going ahead of us into these situations needs these kinds of protections that we did not have.”
Though he had concerns about the bill, Freeman said its passage was a signal to DCS that the legislature wants the agency to “stay in their lane.”
A DCS spokesperson said “the Braun administration values parents’ rights and their access to information about their children.”
“DCS has had productive conversations with the bill’s author to develop language that complies with disclosure laws and court orders related to the department’s ability to release such information,” spokesperson Brian Heinemann told IndyStar.
“While we cannot comment specifically on open cases involving children or their information due to confidentiality laws,” Heinemann said, “we take all allegations of non-compliance seriously and review those for corrective action when substantiated.”
Contact senior government accountability reporter Hayleigh Colombo at hcolombo@indystar.com.
INDIANAPOLIS — With hopes to meet Caitlin Clark, Kestas Jociuf and his 8-year-old daughter, Elizabeth, left their seats in section 119 and went to the tunnel next to the Indiana Fever bench. Before her family started their nine-hour drive from Minnesota to Indiana, Elizabeth painted a picture draped with Fever logos and a “Caitlin, we love you” message.
The Jociuf’s attempt to meet Clark was successful. Elizabeth’s painting now has a new owner.
“Caitlin actually took the picture,” Jociuf said. “Elizabeth probably wrote Caitlin Clark at least 14 times on that drawing.”
Elizabeth and her father also told Clark to feel better soon, to which she thanked them. The Fever announced Monday that Clark would miss at least two weeks with a left quad strain. Since Clark’s injury, the Fever played the Washington Mystics and Connecticut Sun, losing both matchups. Indiana will be without their star guard for at least the next two games, when they host the Mystics on Tuesday and travel to the Chicago Sky on June 7.
Jociuf and his wife, Sulema, had taken their daughter and 10-year-old son to see Clark when she visited the Minnesota Lynx last season. Elizabeth and her brother fell in love with Clark, so Sulema and Jociuf bought seats closer to the court for the family’s first visit to Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
While Sulema admitted she was worried for Clark after hearing of her injury, she said her kids were “upset” when they learned Clark wasn’t playing.
“The visit was worth it even though she’s not playing because we wanted to experience Gainbridge and it’s been great. They have a lot of cool things for the kids. Also, there are other good people on the team,” Sulema said. “I told them we can get more tickets later in the season (to watch Caitlin).”
The family of four spent $900 on their tickets. On game day, the price for the same tickets in section 117 was $174.70. The price difference reflects the impact of Clark’s injury on tickets.
IndyStar collected data from Ticketmaster and found that selected ticket prices for Clark’s future matchups against the Sun, Mystics and Sky, in which she is expected to play, increased by as much as 366%.
Note: These are resale prices and may change daily. These numbers were logged up to two hours before the Fever and Sun tipped off Friday.
The most expensive ticket in section 120 for Friday’s contest against the Sun cost $86.25. When Indiana hosts the Sun on June 17, a ticket in the same section will cost $140.30, a 62.7% increase.
The price difference for a seat nearer to the court when the Mystics return to town Aug. 15 is more consumer-friendly. A seat in section 116 on Tuesday will cost $391.95. The price will increase 11% when Washington makes its final regular-season visit to Indiana.
Sky and Fever games are always a hot ticket, with Clark and Sky forward Angel Reese headlining the matchup. If a fan desires to sit in section 225 at the United Center and watch Indiana and Chicago square off in their WNBA Commissioner’s Cup matchup, the cheapest ticket will cost $57.50.
When the two teams reconvene in Chicago on July 27, the cheapest seat in section 225 will cost $267.95.
Although Clark’s availability may alter ticket prices, the impact of her presence remains the same.
”My 8- and 5-year-old daughters were sad not to see her play, but they were still glad to see her in the building,” said Chris Gerrity, a Fever fan who bought tickets for his family before Clark’s injury was announced. “We are still excited to support the city, the rest of the players and the WNBA.”
A look inside Ivy Tech’s restaurant run completely by students
“We have learned that employers want students who have gained the soft skills of working well together, serving their customers, and basically, working within a team.”
Mykal McEldowney, Indianapolis Star
More than 200 employees are expected to be laid off at Ivy Tech campuses across the state as a result of the Indiana General Assembly’s decision to cut funding to the college system.
This announcement was made by Ivy Tech’s president, Sue Ellspermann, on May 30, as she broke the news to many who were affected by this sudden development. Layoffs began the same day and continue into next week.
Emily Sandberg, Ivy Tech’s assistant vice president of communications, confirmed in an email to the IndyStar that the Indianapolis campus is expected to lay off seven faculty and 14 staff members, and the Hamilton County campus is expected to lay off two staff members.
In Ellspermann’s letter, she notes that the Indiana government’s decision to cut 5% of the school allocated fund, on top of the 5% cut from the state budget agency, would equate to an expected loss of $54 million over the next two years.
These cuts, coupled with Gov. Mike Braun and the Indiana Commission for Higher Education recommending a 0% tuition increase for all state educational institutions, left the school with another revenue option.
“Because the college’s primary revenue sources are state appropriations, tuition, and fees, these developments have had an immediate effect on our planning,” Ellspermann said in her letter. “We have reached the difficult decision to adjust our staffing levels, in addition to efforts to reduce our operational expenses.”
During the 2023 budget session, the General Assembly appropriated about $243 million and $245 million for the 2023-24 and 2024-25 school years, respectively. For 2025-26 and 2026-27, that will drop to about $236 million each. That doesn’t count additional reductions.
Laid-off Ivy Tech workers will receive separation packages, according to Ellspermann’s letter. However, details regarding the separation packages were not provided in the email, noting that laid-off employees will meet with human resources representatives to determine their package.
In total, 202 people will be affected by these layoffs across Ivy Tech’s 45 locations in the state.
“This is a challenging moment for our college, but I know Ivy Tech is strong,” the letter reads.
“I remain confident in our resilience and in our commitment to our students and to one another.”
Contact IndyStar reporter Noe Padilla at npadilla@indystar.com, follow him on X @1NoePadilla or on Bluesky @noepadilla.bsky.social. Courier & Press reporter Jon Webb contributed to this story.
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