Deandra Thompson

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Deandra Thompson

Nonpartisan

Indianapolis Public Schools school board At-large

Tenure

2025 - Present

Term ends

2028

Years in position

0

Predecessor

Kenneth Allen

Report an officeholder change

Elections and appointments

Last elected

November 5, 2024

Education

Bachelor's

Indiana University, 2007

Other

Harvard, 2021

Personal

Birthplace

Indianapolis, Ind.

Profession

Educator

Contact

Personal LinkedIn

Deandra Thompson is an at-large member of the Indianapolis Public Schools school board. She assumed office on January 1, 2025. Her current term ends on December 31, 2028.

Thompson ran for election for an at-large seat of the Indianapolis Public Schools school board. She won in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Thompson (Democratic Party) also ran for election to the Indiana House of Representatives to represent District 96. She was disqualified from the Democratic primary scheduled on May 7, 2024.

Thompson completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Deandra Thompson was born in Indianapolis, Indiana. She earned a bachelor's degree from Indiana University in 2007 and an early childhood education leadership certificate from Harvard in 2021. Her career experience includes working as an educator.

Elections

2024

Indianapolis Public Schools

See also: Indianapolis Public Schools, Indiana, elections (2024)

General election

General election for Indianapolis Public Schools school board At-large

Deandra Thompson defeated Carrie Harris and incumbent Kenneth Allen in the general election for Indianapolis Public Schools school board At-large on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Deandra Thompson (Nonpartisan)	56.2	45,365
	Submit photo	Carrie Harris (Nonpartisan)	22.2	17,947
		Kenneth Allen (Nonpartisan)	21.6	17,450

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 80,762
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Thompson in this election.

Indiana House of Representatives

See also: Indiana House of Representatives elections, 2024

General election

General election for Indiana House of Representatives District 96

Incumbent Gregory Porter won election in the general election for Indiana House of Representatives District 96 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Gregory Porter (D)	100.0	25,952

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 25,952
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Indiana House of Representatives District 96

Incumbent Gregory Porter advanced from the Democratic primary for Indiana House of Representatives District 96 on May 7, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Gregory Porter	100.0	4,606

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 4,606
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Deandra Thompson (D)

Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Thompson in this election.

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Deandra Thompson completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Thompson's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

As someone with 20 years of dedicated experience in working with families and education, I have seen firsthand the transformative power of quality educational resources. Over the past eight years, I have focused on building schools in the early childhood sector, laying the foundation for future generations to thrive. Your support will help continue these vital efforts, ensuring that every child has access to the education they deserve. Together, we can create a brighter future.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• Prek expansion and more partnerships with child care providers to meet the unique needs of families. For example, transportation or online education
• Give power back to schools to ensure the individual needs of students are met by the teachers that know them well.
• Ensure all schools are safe for our children.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Expanding Prek options for families so that students receive the foundations of reading before they enter kindergarten.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

It’s important that elected officials support the reasons voters chose them to be in office through their action and contributions they made to their community.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

I genuinely care about people, and want them to reach their highest potential.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

In this position, it’s important for IPS Commissioners to set the vision for the school district, develop a strategy on achieving that vision and work alongside the administration to ensure those strategies are thoughtfully carried forward.

What strategies or plans would you advance to ensure the schools are properly funded?

My approach to balancing budget constraints while ensuring educational improvements centers around three key priorities. First, we need to empower schools and teachers by shifting decision-making authority for resources like tutoring services and curriculum choices back to them, as they are best positioned to understand and meet their students' needs. This will also reduce administrative costs at the district level. Second, it’s essential to support teachers so they feel engaged and valued, which helps reduce turnover. When teachers want to stay in the profession, we can avoid the high costs of recruitment and training, freeing up funds for other critical needs. Lastly, we must invest in early education by creating a strong pre-K program within our schools, ensuring students start their education with us and stay through elementary, middle, and high school, which stabilizes enrollment and long-term funding. By creating excellent schools in every neighborhood, we can ensure families choose to stay in the district, making it a sustainable and thriving educational system.

What principles drive your policies for safety in schools?

A rigorous, standards-based curriculum is essential to preparing students for success in both academics and life beyond the classroom. However, rigor alone isn’t enough. Our curriculum also reflects the diversity of our student body and the world around them. Every student deserves to see themselves and their experiences represented in the materials they study. That's why I will advocate for culturally responsive teaching practices that ensure the curriculum is both challenging and inclusive. One of my priorities would be ensuring that teachers have access to ongoing professional development that equips them with the tools to integrate diverse perspectives into their teaching. Teachers need the support and resources to not only teach to high academic standards but also to foster a classroom environment where all students feel seen, heard, and respected. This kind of training can help teachers better understand the unique cultural, social, and economic contexts that their students bring to the classroom, which will help bridge gaps in understanding and engagement. I would also push for a curriculum that is constantly evolving to stay relevant in an ever-changing world. This means incorporating new technologies, real-world issues, and global perspectives into lessons so that students are prepared to think critically and solve problems in the 21st century. At the same time, we need to make sure that our curriculum is reflective of historical and contemporary contributions from diverse groups. This helps students better understand the interconnectedness of our society and fosters a sense of belonging, regardless of their background. I believe that excellence in education comes from challenging students to meet high standards while also providing them with the support and representation they need to thrive.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Deandra Thompson did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

Campaign finance summary

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Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

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Deandra Thompson campaign contribution history

Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2024*	Indiana House of Representatives District 96	Disqualified primary	$0	$0
Grand total			$0	$0
Sources: OpenSecrets,  Federal Elections Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* Data from this year may not be complete

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