Marion County Charters Now Enroll Nearly Double IPS
73 charter corporations in Marion County enrolled 35,898 students in 2025-26, 1.8 times the 19,774 at IPS. The crossover came in 2020.
Data-Driven Education Journalism for the Hoosier State
73 charter corporations in Marion County enrolled 35,898 students in 2025-26, 1.8 times the 19,774 at IPS. The crossover came in 2020.
Indiana's majority-minority school corporations grew from 79 to 134 in a decade, reshaping suburbs from Avon to Seymour and manufacturing towns statewide.
Nine Indiana school corporations lost enrollment every single year from 2017 through 2026. Six suburban districts grew every year. Combined, the losers shed twice what the winners gained.
IPS lost a third of its students while outer suburbs hit record highs. Now the first-ring suburbs are declining too.
South Bend Community School Corp has declined every year for a decade, losing 5,829 students and falling from Indiana's 5th- to 11th-largest district.
Nearly one in three Indiana school corporations enrolled fewer students in 2025-26 than in any year since 2016, including seven of the state's 10 largest systems.
White enrollment fell from 69% to 61% of Indiana's public schools since 2016 while every other racial group except Native American grew.
Charter enrollment grew from 29,906 to 56,675 since 2016 as 72 new schools opened. The sector now enrolls 5.5% of students, serving a far more diverse population than traditional schools.
IPS shed 1,281 students in 2025-26, the steepest non-pandemic drop in a decade of decline. Marion County charters now enroll nearly double.
Hispanic enrollment surpassed Black enrollment statewide in 2020 and the gap has widened to 16,163 students. Then growth stopped.
Indiana lost 11,724 students in 2025-26, erasing last year's surprise gain and pushing enrollment below its pandemic low for the first time.
IDOE releases 2025-26 enrollment data showing an 11,724-student loss that erased last year's rebound and pushed Indiana to a new low.