Ritz was directly elected to her by Indiana voters in the 2012 election with more than 1.3 million votes. As State Superintendent of Public Instruction, she holds the highest position of authority over public education in the state. She beat out the incumbent, Republican Tony ?Bennett, for the position.
Since the election, Ritz and Pence have been clashing over a variety of educational policies with claims from both sides of the aisle that Pence is attempting to undermine Ritz’s authority and that Ritz is in over her head with Indiana politics.
This issue of public education in Indiana has gained national attention. Journalist Valerie Strauss of the Washington Post even wrote a column: “It’s a mess in Indiana”.
The most recent dispute between the two is regarding ISTEP, Indiana’s standardized test for grades three ?through eight.
In the past, the testing process lasted approximately six hours. The test, which has been modified three times since 2009, had to be altered again in order to comply with both state and federal ?standards.
The new version of the test, which was modified by Ritz and the rest of her department, would take about 12 hours to complete. In response, Pence issued an executive order demanding the test be shortened.
The Indiana State Republican Party sides with Pence on the political feud, agreeing with claims that Ritz is at fault for miscommunication ?between the two offices.
“The extended testing time would put Hoosier students, families and educators through unnecessary anxiety, and put a drain on school resources,” said Tim Berry, chairman of the Indiana Republican Party, in a press release. “The tension between the SBOE and Ritz’s office has led to embarrassing ?dysfunction and it’s time for change.”
These kinds of conflicts between the governor’s and Ritz’s offices have become even more relevant because of the recent passage of legislation in the Indiana House that would undermine Ritz’s authority on the State Board of Education.
House Bill 1609, which passed in the Indiana House on Tuesday by a margin of 58-40, proposes a complete reorganization of the structure of the Indiana SBOE. It is known as a partisan bill because it was authored by four ?Republicans.
Historically, the elected superintendent of public instruction is automatically given the position of the chair of the SBOE, while the other 10 members are appointed by the governor to represent each of the nine congressional districts in Indiana.
HB 1609 would remove Ritz from her position by July and have the new chairman appointed by the 10 other members.
The hashtag #IStandWithRitz began trending in Indiana on Tuesday when the bill came to a vote. Students, parents and educators voiced their support for Ritz and their opposition to the legislation.
Maggie Hopkins, a senior at Bloomington High School South, expressed her concern for the possible effects of the legislation.
“Not only does the partisan game-playing — making up ways to grab the say on education policy from duly-elected Ritz — affect us, but the message on voting will affect us too,” Hopkins said. “Young people already have the lowest (voter turnout) of any age group, and when our state finds ways to invalidate votes to a partisan advantage, I don’t believe that encourages the average person to vote.”
The Indiana State ?Democratic Party also sides with Ritz on the issue, seeing the legislation as an attempt to undermine Indiana voters.
“The efforts to circumvent Superintendent Ritz’s authority is an arrogant overreach that’s pure politics,” said John Zody, chairman of the Indiana Democratic Party, in a press release. “Instead of focusing on issues that move Indiana forward ... Gov. Pence and his allies waste time disrespecting the 1.3 million voters who elected Glenda Ritz to be the state’s ?top educator.”
HB 1609 has now moved to the Indiana Senate.
