Morgan Monroe-Gregg School Board

What a school board does

A school board is the elected or appointed governing body of a public school corporation, the legal unit that runs a local school district ^{[1, 2]}. The board hires and evaluates the superintendent, adopts policies, and approves the annual budget, while the superintendent and staff run schools day to day ^[3]. Most boards have five or seven members serving staggered four-year terms ^[3]. Starting in 2026, candidates may list a political party, run as independents, or list no affiliation on the ballot, and there is no primary for these seats ^{[2, 4]}.

Term

4 years, with elections staggered so part of the board is chosen every two years ^[3]

Elected

At the November general election (November 3, 2026, or November 2028 for some seats); depending on the local organization plan, members represent the whole school corporation (at large) or a district within it, and some boards are wholly or partly appointed ^[2]

Ballot label

Each candidate chooses a party label, 'Independent', or no affiliation, shown next to the name; no primary and no straight-ticket voting for these races ^{[2, 4]}

Pay

Set by board resolution: an annual amount of no more than 10% of the lowest starting teacher salary in the school corporation, plus a capped per diem ^[5]

On the 2026 ballot

632 races in 276 school corporations; 1,035 candidates, 197 races contested ^[6]

The job in full — what the Indiana Code puts in it, what it pays, and what to ask a candidate.

What has changed in this job lately

Changes in the law the next officeholder will work under, most distant first.

1. 2025

   Senate Enrolled Act 287 allowed school board candidates to declare a party affiliation; the Indiana School Boards Association opposed the change, and a supporter quoted by WNDU, a Noblesville school board member, said it adds transparency ^[17].

2. 2026

   Candidates choose a party, 'Independent' or no affiliation on their nominating petition, and that choice appears on the ballot; a candidate claiming the Democratic or Republican party must have voted in that party's primary in the two most recent primaries they voted in, or have certification from the county party chair, or can be challenged and removed from the ballot ^[2].

3. July 2026

   Chalkbeat reported, citing Indiana School Boards Association data, that 524 of 1,044 candidates chose a party, about 72% of them Republicans ^[18]; the Indiana Election Division's 2026 guidance and the wording of the law differ on the primary-voting test, a question county election boards decide ^[19].

4. February 2026

   Senate Enrolled Act 25 set the order of school board candidates on the ballot, grouped by party, with candidates who list no affiliation placed after the party and independent candidates ^[20].

5. 2025

   Senate Enrolled Act 1, a property tax law, limits how much operating revenue districts can raise through taxes and restricts school referendums to statewide general elections in even-numbered years ^{[21, 22]}.

6. 2025

   The same law requires districts to share operating revenue with brick-and-mortar charter schools that enroll their students, statewide starting in 2028 ^{[21, 22]}.

7. 2025

   The state budget opened Choice Scholarship vouchers to all Indiana families starting in June 2026 ^[16].

8. 2026

   The Indianapolis Public Education Corporation, rather than the Indianapolis Public Schools board, now certifies Indianapolis Public Schools referendum questions for the ballot ^[20].

9. 2023

   Senate Enrolled Act 391 changed the so-called $1 law so the Indiana Department of Education can order districts that lost at least 10% of enrollment over five years to close schools under 60% capacity and offer them to charter schools ^[23].

10. 2023

    House Enrolled Act 1447 required school districts to set up procedures for complaints that library material is obscene or harmful to minors ^[10].

About Monroe-Gregg School District

• The offices on the state list belong to the Monroe-Gregg School District (M-GSD), which serves Monroe and Gregg townships in north-central Morgan County, including the town of Monrovia; the state list adds the county name ^{[24, 25, 6]}. It runs Monrovia Elementary, Monrovia Middle and Monrovia High schools ^[25]. Federal data list 1,567 students and three schools in 2024-25 ^[26].
• Superintendent: Trent Provo led the district through spring 2026 ^{[27, 28]}. On April 13, 2026 the board voted 3-1-1 (Tom Kennedy opposed, Jack Elliott abstaining) on a personnel recommendation that board attorney Steve Harris said named Andrew Grismore associate superintendent with the intent to make him superintendent July 1, 2026, pending contract negotiations; the minutes say members discussed the reasons for their votes but do not record them ^[29]. After a public hearing with no comments, the board approved Grismore's superintendent contract 5-0 on June 8, 2026 and thanked Provo, who was leaving ^[28]. Grismore had been the district's Ready Schools coordinator and grant administrator ^[30].
• The board has five members ^[31]. Members are elected under the district's organization plan on file with the state ^[32]; that plan was not available, so the number of residence districts and who votes in each race could not be confirmed. The current members are Brock Sears (president), Kevin Blundell (vice president), Ky Kizzee (secretary), Jack Elliott and Tom Kennedy ^{[33, 27]}.
• Seats on the 2026 ballot: District 1 (Monroe Township) and District 2 (Gregg Township), one member each, matching the state list's 'vote for 1' ^[6]. Sears and Kizzee took the oath as newly elected members in January 2023 ^[34]. Sears was a District 1 candidate in 2022 ^[35], and a GoodParty.org listing shows Kizzee as the District 2, Gregg Township incumbent with a 2023-2026 term ^[36]. Neither is on the 2026 ballot, so both seats will have new members; Justin Quinnette is the only District 2 candidate ^[6].
• Budget and the 2025 property-tax law: on April 13, 2026 the board approved, 4-1 with Elliott opposed, a plan for financial savings that Provo said was needed because of the legislative changes in Senate Bill 1, with a goal of finding savings without cutting the workforce; Provo said vacated positions would be reviewed before being refilled ^[29]. A resolution to withdraw from the Public Employees' Retirement Fund was tabled 5-0 the same night, and on May 11 Provo said there was no plan to move forward with it ^{[29, 37]}. The board held its 2027 budget hearing September 14 and scheduled budget resolutions for October 5, 2026 ^{[38, 39]}.
• Referendum: on March 9, 2026 the board voted 5-0 to hire Policy Analytics to analyze the district's financial needs related to an operating referendum and the potential effects for the district and taxpayers ^[30]. No referendum appears on the agendas reviewed.
• Outsourcing custodial and maintenance work: on March 9, 2026 the board voted 4-1 (Kennedy opposed) to table a $749,973.67 facility management contract with GSF Cleaning and Support Services so current employees could meet with the company first; on March 23 the four members present approved it 4-0 ^{[30, 40]}. A teachers' association representative told the board on March 9 she had concerns about delays in cleaning buildings and hoped the board would take the same care with any future reductions ^[30].
• Facilities and finance: on April 13, 2026 the board revised an earlier bond approval so the remaining funds could be used for capital facility improvements and approved refinancing a 2016 bond, which Provo estimated would save $200,000 or more ^[29]. On August 19, 2026 the board voted 5-0 for a $682,947 solar panel project on the high school roof, fully funded through Google's energy efficiency program, with estimated savings of about $46,000 a year ^[41]. The district also accepted Google donations of $50,000 to its rainy day fund (January), $200,000 for the agriculture/FFA program and $10,000 for e-learning connectivity (May) ^{[27, 37]}.
• Planning and other issues: the district held strategic plan community meetings in early 2026 that included a 2025 facility study, and hired Kaiser Consulting for strategic planning ^{[27, 30]}. Board members voted 5-0 in January 2026 to pay themselves $2,000 a year ^[27]. In May a resident asked the board to let homeschool students who meet state athletic association rules play Monrovia sports; in August the board approved athlete handbook updates that included homeschool student-athlete requirements ^{[37, 42]}. Board Policy 9270 was approved 4-1 on July 13, 2026, with Kennedy opposed ^[43].
• Split votes: most 2026 votes were unanimous; the split votes found were the March 9 tabling (4-1), the April 13 superintendent-related personnel vote (3-1-1) and savings plan (4-1), and the July 13 Policy 9270 vote (4-1) ^{[30, 29, 43]}.
• Forums: no candidate forum or questionnaire for this race was found. District 1 has three candidates on the state list: Carl Gilbert (listed as Republican), John Landis Dowell (Independent) and Sarah Ragsdale (nonpartisan) ^[6].

District 1, Monroe Township

3 candidates

District 2, Gregg Township

Unopposed

Key points

• Referendum: on March 9, 2026 the board voted 5-0 to hire Policy Analytics to analyze the district's financial needs related to an operating referendum and the potential effects for the district and taxpayers. No referendum appears on the agendas reviewed. (Monroe-Gregg School District)
• Outsourcing custodial and maintenance work: on March 9, 2026 the board voted 4-1 (Kennedy opposed) to table a $749,973.67 facility management contract with GSF Cleaning and Support Services so current employees could meet with the company first; on March 23 the four members present approved it 4-0. (Monroe-Gregg School District)
• Facilities and finance: on April 13, 2026 the board revised an earlier bond approval so the remaining funds could be used for capital facility improvements and approved refinancing a 2016 bond, which Provo estimated would save $200,000 or more. (Monroe-Gregg School District)

Sources