Should Indiana expand the use of private school vouchers? Do teachers deserve a $60,000 salary minimum? Does state testing need to be abolished? 

The three candidates vying to be Indiana’s next governor have offered varied responses to these questions and others as they look to reshape the state’s education system. 

Here is how U.S. Sen. Mike Braun, a Republican; former Superintendent of Public Instruction Jennifer McCormick, a Democrat; and Libertarian nominee Donald Rainwater would address several key education-related issues in Indiana. 

Private school vouchers

McCormick disagrees with her conservative opponents on the future of vouchers, which allow parents to receive state funding to offset the cost of private school tuition. 

Proponents of Indiana’s voucher program, which has expanded in recent years, argue it offers more choices for parents, while detractors say it leads to cuts in public school funding. 

Braun and Rainwater have come out in favor of removing the state’s $220,000 income limit on its voucher program, allowing the state’s wealthiest residents to share in the program. 

McCormick proposed tighter restrictions around schools that receive vouchers, including enforcement of academic standards and fiscal responsibility. She has expressed alarm at the amount of money — an estimated $1.6 billion and counting — that has moved from public to private schools as a result of the program. 

Her website also calls for “a pause in the expansion of school privatization efforts.”

Teacher pay

Teacher salaries will almost certainly be a topic of discussion in the Indiana General Assembly’s upcoming budget-focused session. 

While Rainwater’s website does not weigh in on the topic, it is one of the few areas in which Braun and McCormick agree.  

Braun’s plan calls for an increase in teacher base salaries but does not give a specific number. He would also seek to establish an “outcomes-focused” evaluation system by which high-performing teachers would receive raises. 

Finally, Braun’s plan would also provide additional raises in subjects and school districts in which there is a teacher shortage. 

McCormick seeks a $60,000 minimum annual salary for teachers. The state does not have a formal salary schedule, but educators are generally not paid less than $40,000 per year and earned $58,500 on average in 2022-23, according to a state report. 

Braun and McCormick both call for expanding statewide training programs for new teachers. 

State testing

Rainwater calls for abolishing statewide testing. 

McCormick, who pushed back against state testing during her time as state superintendent, wants to “protect instructional time by fighting to eliminate excessive state-mandated testing.”

Braun’s platform does not specifically mention state testing. 

Child care/Pre-K

McCormick calls for expanding access to affordable child care, as well as a universal pre-K program. 

She would also establish a plan for improving children’s literacy rates by creating a birth to age 3 milestone program. 

Braun and Rainwater’s plans do not mention pre-K or early child care. 

Vocational schools

Braun and Rainwater would each like to see expanded career training taking place in high school. 

Braun’s plan calls for investing in career scholarship programs, supporting extracurricular exploration and rewarding schools for graduating students prepared for the workforce, college or the military. 

Rainwater is pushing for simplified graduation requirements and early exposure through high school programs. 

McCormick calls for stronger career counseling in K-12 education, but does not specify any push for more career-training programs. 

Contact Rory Appleton on X at @roryehappleton or email him at [email protected].

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