Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) School District families and staff received a message Wednesday afternoon from Superintendent Patrick Mapes, announcing that Opportunity Education (OE) has withdrawn its proposal to establish a charter high school in the district.  A community forum scheduled for November 21 has been cancelled.

In his message, Mapes quotes part of the withdrawal letter from OE:

“…we also understand that this may not be an optimal time for the community to undertake such an innovation effort, particularly one that challenges accepted assumptions about what schools can be, with a focus on putting student interests first. We deeply value the time and thoughtful consideration you have provided during the exploration of this opportunity, and we have been impressed by your district leadership’s vision and collaboration throughout this process.”

In his message, Mapes describes the OE withdrawal as a “missed opportunity,” but added this:

“…we remain committed to our top priority: engaging with our community and listening to its voice. Hamilton Southeastern Schools will continue to explore all possibilities to enhance educational opportunities for our students while emphasizing open and transparent communication with all stakeholders.”

You can read Mr. Mapes entire message below.

===========

Dear HSE Families and Staff,

Thank you once again for your active participation in the ongoing discussions regarding the potential establishment of an innovation network school within our district.

I am writing to share an important update: the Opportunity Education Foundation has withdrawn its previously submitted charter application. As a result, the Community Forum scheduled at the Fishers High School on November 21 has been canceled, and no further action will be required by the school board this year.

In their withdrawal letter, Opportunity Education expressed their gratitude to our community for its consideration, saying in part:

“Opportunity Education and our founder, Joe Ricketts, proposed to serve the teachers and students of the HSE District with unprecedented philanthropic investments in school facilities and an excellence-focused school model built on student ownership of their learning and readiness for college and career.

We saw exciting synergy between our philanthropic mission and your district leadership’s commitment to student future-readiness. We were eager to partner, add an innovative option for families, create new physical assets for the community, enable hundreds of new annual workforce connections for high school students, and establish a new collaborative in-district option for students defining their career pathways.

While we believe this synergy still exists, we also understand that this may not be an optimal time for the community to undertake such an innovation effort, particularly one that challenges accepted assumptions about what schools can be, with a focus on putting student interests first. We deeply value the time and thoughtful consideration you have provided during the exploration of this opportunity, and we have been impressed by your district leadership’s vision and collaboration throughout this process.”

While this decision marks a missed opportunity to bring significant philanthropic resources and innovative learning options to our students, we remain committed to our top priority: engaging with our community and listening to its voice. Hamilton Southeastern Schools will continue to explore all possibilities to enhance educational opportunities for our students while emphasizing open and transparent communication with all stakeholders.

As a reminder, the Community Forum scheduled for tomorrow is canceled, and there will be no related board action at the December 11 School Board meeting. We appreciate your ongoing engagement and support as we look to create the best possible future for our students.

Sincerely,

Pat Mapes
Superintendent