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Ramon Batts
Ramon Batts was a candidate for the District 2 seat on the Indianapolis Public Schools school board in Indiana. Batts was defeated in the by-district general election on November 8, 2016.
Batts was a candidate for an at-large seat on the Indianapolis school board in the general election on November 4, 2014. Ramon Batts lost the general election on November 4, 2014. Batts also ran unsuccessfully for the District 3 seat in 2010.
Biography
Ramon L. Batts is a resident of Indianapolis, Indiana. Batts graduated from Arsenal Tech High School in the district before earning his bachelor's degree in business administration and marketing from the Indiana Institute of Technology, his master's degree in divinity and ministry from Virginia Union University and his doctorate in ministry, social justice and political activism from United Theological Seminary.
Since 2002, he has served as an athletics coach with Indianapolis Public Schools, and from 2002 to 2013, he also worked as a program director in the district. Batts founded and serves as the senior pastor of the Change & Restoration Community Baptist Church.[1]
Elections
2016
Four of the seven seats on the Indianapolis Public Schools school board were up for general election on November 8, 2016. Three of the seats were up for by-district election and one was up for at-large election. In District 1, board incumbent Michael O'Connor defeated challenger Christine Prince. District 2 incumbent Gayle Cosby did not file for re-election, and three newcomers vied for the open spot on the board: Venita Moore, Nanci Lacy, and Ramon Batts, with Moore winning the seat. In District 4, incumbent Diane Arnold successfully defended her seat against Larry Vaughn. For the at-large seat, incumbent Sam Odle filed for re-election and competed with challengers Elizabeth Gore and James Grim. Gore succeeded in ousting the incumbent. There was no primary.[2][3][4]
Results
| Indianapolis Public Schools, District 2 General Election, 4-year term, 2016 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Venita Moore |
51.14% | 6,831 |
| Ramon Batts | 28.87% | 3,856 |
| Nanci Lacy | 19.99% | 2,670 |
| Total Votes (100) | 13,357 | |
| Source: Indianapolis, "2016 General Election Results for Marion County, Certified Results," accessed November 29, 2016 | ||
Funding
Batts reported $525.00 in contributions and $129.28 in expenditures to the Marion County Board of Elections, which left his campaign with $395.72 cash on hand as of October 24, 2016.[5]
School board candidates in Indiana who received more than $500 in contributions or made more than $500 in expenditures had to have a principal committee. This committee was designated by a candidate to accept contributions and make expenditures to promote him or her for the election. Each committee was required to have a chairperson and a treasurer, and no contribution or expenditure could be accepted or made on behalf of the candidate's committee without the authorization of the chairperson or treasurer.
Once the $500 threshold was reached, the candidate had to also file a Statement of Organization form no later than at noon, 10 days after the candidate exceeded the limit. The requirement to form a principal committee and file a statement was lifted for candidates who did not meet the $500 threshold requirement. The pre-election report was due October 21, 2016, and the annual report was due January 18, 2017.[6]
Endorsements
Batts was endorsed by AFSCME 962/Local 3395/Indy Library Workers, Concerned Clergy of Greater Indianapolis, the Indianapolis Education Association, Our IPS, and Dr. Michael Brown's "The People's Voice."[7]
2014
The election in Indianapolis featured three seats up for general election on November 4, 2014. At-large incumbent Andrea J. Roof ran against challengers Ramon Batts, David Hampton, Josh Owens and Mary Ann Sullivan. Kelly Bentley and James Turner competed with board member Samantha Adair-White for the District 3 seat, and District 5 incumbent Michael D. Brown faced a challenge from LaNier L. Echols. Challengers Mary Ann Sullivan, Kelly Bentley and LaNier L. Echols won the three seats.
Results
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Mary Ann Sullivan |
45.6% | 14,000 | |
| Nonpartisan | Andrea J. Roof Incumbent | 19.9% | 6,115 | |
| Nonpartisan | David Hampton | 17.7% | 5,431 | |
| Nonpartisan | Ramon Batts | 9.4% | 2,879 | |
| Nonpartisan | Josh Owens | 7.5% | 2,295 | |
| Total Votes | 30,720 | |||
| Source: Marion County Election Board, "2014 General Election Results for Marion County," accessed December 29, 2014 | ||||
Funding
Batts reported $525.00 in contributions and $129.28 in expenditures during the election, which left him with $395.72 on hand according to the Marion County Election Board.[8]
Endorsements
Batts did not receive any official endorsements for his campaign during the election.
2010
| Indianapolis Public Schools, District 3 General Election, 4-year term, 2010 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Nonpartisan | Samantha Adair-White |
25.9% | 1,525 | |
| Nonpartisan | Josefa Beyer | 25.3% | 1,489 | |
| Nonpartisan | Ramon L. Batts | 20.4% | 1,200 | |
| Nonpartisan | Roy W. Schroeder | 20.3% | 1,192 | |
| Nonpartisan | Glenn Eric Sandifer II | 8% | 473 | |
| Total Votes | 5,879 | |||
| Source: Marion County Election Board, "2010 Primary Election Results Summary," accessed September 3, 2014 | ||||
Campaign themes
2014
Batts provided the following responses to a survey conducted by Chalkbeat:
| “ | 1. Do you support the direction of the school district under Superintendent Lewis Ferebee?
Maybe. What, if anything, do you like about Ferebee’s leadership of the district? What would you change? Dr. Ferebee’s leadership has held the hand of different groups at different times. I appreciate his willingness to share the budget publicly; certainly the recent flaws found from (former interim superintendent) Peggy Hinkley’s tenure. I would change Dr. Ferebee’s seemingly allegiance to the big business community and his support of House Bill 1321 (allowing IPS to forge charter school partnerships). I would change his direction concerning the athletic community of IPS. Certainly limiting the funding in athletics is counter productive; as studies have shown athletes graduate at a higher rate than any other group. I would revisit the programs Peggy Hinkley destroyed in the name of a “budget deficit.” 2. Do you believe the operation of IPS’ central office is efficient? Maybe. What is your opinion of the efficiency of IPS’ central office operations? How much money should be spent outside the classroom on high-level district operations? I believe central office could operate with less confusion. Teachers and students should be provided with all things necessary to achieve at a high level. There is no price tag. 3. Should the school district partner with charter schools? No. Do you support the House Bill 1321 “innovation network” law? What is the ideal relationship between the district and a charter school operator? No I do not support House Bill 1321. I think there are some opportunities for relationships, but sending our best students to be experiments with a charter is ridiculous. Charter schools are in competition with IPS, therefore we should not allow them into our buildings or our programs. So the ideal relationship is most likely see them on the playing field. 4. Do you support the state’s voucher program? No. If yes, why do you support vouchers? If not, would you propose ending it? End it! 5. The district is moving toward more partnerships with outside groups like The Mind Trust and Stand for Children. Do you support stronger partnerships with school reform organizations? No. If not, why not? If yes, what would you envision those partnerships with charter school organizations look like? Mind Trust and Stand For Children are a smoke screen for big business to take over the public school system. They are not looking out for the interest of children and families; their interested in making money for the rich off the backs of poor families. 6. Teachers haven’t received a pay raise in several years. What budget changes, if any, would you support to make this happen? We have to find the fat in the budget to pay teachers. Certainly the monies being spent by the Mind Trust and Stand For Children for these elections would help. 7. What percentage of a teacher’s performance evaluation score should be based on student test score growth? None. 8. The state takeover process has been scrutinized recently. What’s your proposal for how to improve schools that have been rated an F for six straight years? IPS has programs that work. We need to replicate those programs and restore a sense of pride in our students and families. IPS needs to fight to eliminate the labeling of schools so our children, teachers and administrators can focus on being whole instead of parts. 9. Ferebee has identified 11 low-performing priority schools to receive extra support and resources. What is your vision for how to improve IPS’ low-performing schools? Again, I believe we already have the solution in our system. My vision would be to replicate Center for Inquiry schools, Sidener Academy, Project Restore and the math and science magnet (Arsenal Tech High School). 10. What is your vision for how schools within the district should be governed? What role should principals and their assistants have in leading schools? Principals and their assistants were hired to lead a school. They are not hired to be superintendents. Principals should help, along with parents and the community, to create an environment where learning can take place. 11. What didn’t we ask? Tell us about your platform, or another issue you’re passionate about. 1. Family engagement and empowerment Schools should be child- and family-centered places for teaching and learning. It is the schools’ responsibility to extend a hand of mutual collaboration to families and initiate the process of engagement. It is important for IPS to set up an infrastructure for effective parent and community engagement. 2. Eradicate the school-to-prison pipeline “Zero-tolerance” policies often criminalize minor infractions of school rules, which lead to students being adjudicated for behavior that should be handled inside the school. Research shows students of color are especially vulnerable to push-out trends and the uneven application of discipline. 3. Authentic assessments of student achievement Student assessments are designed to demonstrate what teachers are teaching, and what students are learning, not simply teaching to the test. Believing in the potential of each individual child and what he or she can do with their knowledge is imperative. 4. Recruitment and retention of quality, culturally-competent teachers Educators with multilingual and multicultural backgrounds can be advocates and provide crucial support for diverse students and families.[9] |
” |
| —Chalkbeat survey (2014)[10] | ||
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Ramon Batts Indianapolis Public Schools. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ LinkedIn, "Dr. Ramon Batts," accessed October 17, 2014
- ↑ Indianapolis, "Candidate Filings," accessed August 29, 2016
- ↑ Indianapolis Public Schools, "Your Commissioners," accessed August 29, 2016
- ↑ Indianapolis, "2016 General Election Results for Marion County," accessed November 10, 2016
- ↑ Marion County Board of Elections, "Batts, Ramon," accessed October 24, 2016
- ↑ Indiana Election Division, "2016 Indiana Campaign Finance Manual," accessed October 7, 2016
- ↑ Elisabeth Moore, "Email conversation with Dountonia S. Batts," October 25, 2016
- ↑ Marion County Election Board, "Most Recent Campaign Finance Filings," accessed October 17, 2014
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Chalkbeat, "Survey: Ramon Batts is skeptical of business influence," October 6, 2014
| 2016 Indianapolis Public Schools Elections | |
| Election date: | November 8, 2016 |
| Candidates: | District 1: Incumbent, Michael O'Connor • Christine Prince District 2: Venita Moore • Nanci Lacy • Ramon Batts |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
