Summer is officially over for students in the Indianapolis Public Schools district. IPS students started their first day of school Monday during their third year since the COVID-19 pandemic began.

Randy Wilson was rummaging around a local flea market when he stumbled across a pristine yearbook from his old Indianapolis high school. From there, he started a collection that became a trove of history on Arsenal Technical High School and its graduates.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced last week it recommends people wear masks in schools as COVID-19 cases surge. It's prompting some Hoosier schools to revise their policies, while others are waiting to make decisions based on local COVID-19 data, as many near – or have already started – a new academic year.

Parents with an education advocacy group are demanding Indianapolis Public Schools' leaders institute more equitable policies for children of color.

IPS provided results of the panorama survey, which focuses on three groups – students in grades 3-12, staff and families – during their last school board meeting. The district has conducted the initiative for the past three years to measure how the district is responding to topics such as school climate, faculty growth mindset and school belonging.

Although students and teachers are out of school for the summer, equity and inclusion is still a hot topic in Indianapolis Public Schools.

Parents and a principal are calling on Indianapolis Public Schools to change enrollment polices that lead to a disproportionate number of white students at the district’s most popular choice programs.

Indianapolis students and advocates want to find ways to better support students and school staff without calling resource officers into the classroom.

Indianapolis Public Schools is asking for input on how it will spend some of its more than $200 million in federal funding to address the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic in schools.

Social unrest after high-profile cases of violence at the hands of police have spurred ongoing debates about the role of law enforcement in communities. Now, school districts across the country – including some in Indiana – are reevaluating their relationships with school-based officers.