Statewide Asian American equity and justice group launches in Bloomington, one year after bus attack

Melisa May Borja, co-chair of HAAP. (Jan. 18, 2024)

HAAP logo. (Jan. 18, 2204)

Helen Zia and Michell Waugh Dahl at the HAAP launch on Jan. 18, 2014.

Helen Zia speaks with HAAP launch attendees. (Jan. 18, 2024)

From left: Melanie Castilo-Cullather, Katherin Chi, Helen Zia, Michelle Waugh Dahl, and Rachel Tomas Morgan.

Helen Zia addresses the crowd at the HAAP launch in the I Fell Gallery on Jan. 18, 2024.

On Jan. 11, 2023, an Indiana University student was stabbed as she rode a Bloomington Transit bus, because she looked Asian.

From the city council dais this past Wednesday, District 5 representative Shruti Rana mentioned the incident, calling last week “a poignant one for our city, in that it marks the one-year anniversary of the racially motivated attack on the Asian American IU student who was stabbed while riding a city bus.”

Last year, in the wake of the attack, an early February solidarity rally in Dunn Meadow was organized by the Asian Pacific Islander Public Affairs (APAPA) Indiana chapter. At the rally, IU neuroscience student Katelyn Wo told the crowd, “Even our little bubble at IU Bloomington is not, and never has been, a safe place for Asian and Asian American people.”

Giving remarks this past week that supported the “never has been” part of Wo’s statement was Helen Zia, a journalist and activist for Asian American and LGBTQ rights, who was visiting from California. Zia recalled the shooting of IU student Won-Joon Yoon on July 4, 1999, by a white supremacist who had singled out minorities in two states.

Zia’s remarks came as part of an event that re-launched AAPA Indiana as Hoosier Asian American Power (HAAP).

The relaunch was held in the I Fell Gallery on 4th Street, the same building that is home to Rainbow Bakery. Continue reading “Statewide Asian American equity and justice group launches in Bloomington, one year after bus attack” →

MCCSC board wants public to mull elementary school merger, meant to balance socio-economic status

https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1FGkzX6Tfk0hSpxK-djsz6oJBQ2kxAfo&usp=sharing

Data used to build the chart is available here: https://bloomdocs.org/wp-content/uploads/simple-file-list/MCCSC-SES-data-by-elementary-school.tsv

Responding to a request from the Monroe County Community School Corporation board, this week district superintendent Jeff Hauswald presented a possible plan to merge the attendance areas for two pairs of elementary schools.

The idea would be to divide the grades for the bigger attendance areas between the two existing buildings for each pair of schools.

The purpose of merging the schools would be to improve the balance of socio-economic status (SES) among students in different elementary school buildings.

The key metric for SES of students is defined by the Indiana Department of Education—as the percentage of students who qualify for free or reduced lunch, based on income eligibility guidelines.

One merger would involve consolidating the attendance areas for Childs Elementary and Templeton Elementary. At the end of a three-year transition period, Childs would serve the combined attendance areas for pre-kindergarten through grade 2. Templeton would serve grade 3 through grade 6.

A second merger, which could be implemented by itself or combined with the first one, would consolidate the attendance areas for University Elementary and Fairview Elementary. At the end of a three-year transition period, University would serve the combined attendance areas for pre-kindergarten through grade 3. Fairview would serve grade 4 to grade 6. Continue reading “MCCSC board wants public to mull elementary school merger, meant to balance socio-economic status” →

Bloomington school schedule decision: MCCSC board takes control for itself, away from superintendent

MCCSC board member Ross Grimes.

MCCSC board member Erin Wyatt.

MCCSC board member Cathy Fuentes-Rohwer.

Demonstrators outside the MCCSC board’s meeting location.

MCCSC superintendent Jeff Hauswald.

MCCSC board member Brandon Shurr.

MCCSC board member Erin Cooperman.

MCCSC board member April Hennessey participated by Zoom.

MCCSC board member Ashley Pirani.

The daily schedules for Bloomington’s four high schools will not change before the 2025-26 school year, and even if they do, it’s not certain the result will be a unified schedule for all schools.

What’s more, any decision on a schedule change will rest with the seven-member board of the Monroe County Community School Corporation, not with MCCSC superintendent Jeff Hauswald.

That’s all the result of action by the MCCSC board at its regular monthly meeting on Tuesday night. The board was split 4–3 on the question.

The motion to add the question to the agenda, as well as the motion to make the schedule change a board voting matter, was put forward by board vice president April Hennessey. She was participating in the meeting remotely on the Zoom video conferencing platform.

Voting for the board’s role as scheduling decision maker were: Hennessey, Ashley Pirani, Erin Wyatt, and Erin Cooperman. Voting to leave the decision making authority with the superintendent and his designees were Ross Grimes, Cathy Fuentes-Rohwer, and board president Brandon Shurr.

Hauswald had been planning to implement a unified schedule starting with the 2024-25 school year.

Right after Tuesday’s roll call vote concluded, the board’s meeting room at the MCCSC Co-Lab on East Miller Drive erupted in applause from the roughly 120 people who had crammed into the space to speak during public commentary. Continue reading “Bloomington school schedule decision: MCCSC board takes control for itself, away from superintendent” →

Nov. 7 election: School district voters will decide on 8.5-cent tax increase

MCCSC board vice president April Hennessey (June 27, 2023)

Paul Farmer, president of Monroe County Education Association (June 25, 2023)

MCCSC MCCSC superintendent Jeff Hauswald (June 27, 2023)

MCCSC board member Cathy Fuentes-Rohwer (June 25, 2023)

MCCSC board president Brandon Shurr (June 27, 2023)

On Nov. 7, voters who live in the Monroe County Community School Corporation will decide whether to increase their property tax rate by 8.5 cents.

The resolution to put the question on the ballot was approved by the MCCSC board on Tuesday night at its regular monthly meeting.

The vote was unanimous among the seven board members, who were all present at the meeting.

According to the wording of the ballot question, the money to be raised by the additional tax has to be used for the purpose of “expanding and funding free and affordable early childhood education (including preschool) and eliminating student and family fees for K-12 education, funding career education program costs and technology and funding supply and instructional materials for all students.”

According to district superintendent Jeff Hauswald, the effect of the proposed tax increase, combined with some reductions in other tax rates, would mean about $50 more dollars a year for someone who owns a $250,000 home.

Tuesday’s meeting was lightly attended, but one person did take a turn at the public mic, in support of the referendum.

Paul Farmer, president of Monroe County Education Association, spoke on his own behalf, because the teachers union has not yet voted on the question. But Farmer said he thinks the MCEA will vote in support of the increased tax. Continue reading “Nov. 7 election: School district voters will decide on 8.5-cent tax increase” →

Transgender Day message: “You don’t have to let policy happen to you. You can happen to policy.”

Melanie Davis

Indiana’s Own Dana Black

Transgender Visibility Day Celebration, Monroe County courthouse lawn April 2, 2023

Nicole Bolden

April Hennessey

Shelli Yoder

Kirin Clawson

On Sunday afternoon, around 150 people gathered on the southeast corner of the Monroe County courthouse in downtown Bloomington, for a celebration of the Transgender Day of Visibility.

Melanie Davis, with the LGBTIQ+ Community Center of Bloomington, kicked off the the event by telling the crowd “There’s a lot of scary stuff going on. We all know, we’ve all felt it.”

The “scary stuff” that Davis was talking about includes some legislation now pending in the state legislature.

When state senator Shelli Yoder took the mic she talked about two bills: HB 1608 (Education matters); and SB 480 (Gender transition procedures for minors). Continue reading “Transgender Day message: “You don’t have to let policy happen to you. You can happen to policy.”” →