From nearly the moment after the speaker’s gavel brought a contentious 2022 legislative session to a close, the Indiana Chamber has been pushing hard on multiple fronts to ensure that 2023 would be different. The state simply cannot afford another session consumed by factious, culture war issues that might play well politically but do little to move Indiana forward. Rather, the Chamber was intent on ensuring 2023 would be defined by a bold, ambitious set of legislative priorities directly aimed at Indiana’s most pressing education and workforce challenges.

Across a host of measures, parents and policymakers alike should be concerned by troubling trends that include unacceptably low academic proficiency rates, declining college-going rates and poor labor participation rates, especially among Hoosiers with low levels of education attainment. The Chamber’s sense of urgency has centered around Indiana’s standing on two key metrics in particular: education attainment and per capita income, where the Hoosier state respectively ranks 37th and 39th nationally. Adding to this sense of urgency has been the recognition that 2023 was the last budget session for Indiana’s second-term Governor coupled with strong state revenues and an enviable state budget surplus.

Indeed, now was the time to push for transformational state policies and targeted investments that spur better education and workforce outcomes that support economic development and upward mobility.

To build momentum for a momentous legislative session, the Chamber has worked vigorously over the past several months to engage policymakers, business leaders and other key stakeholders in discussions regarding Indiana’s most critical education/workforce challenges and corresponding policy remedies. These conversations were guided by two documents developed and widely disseminated by the Chamber. The first, a report titled “Indiana’s Leaking Talent Pipeline,” spotlighted deficiencies and opportunities for intervention and improvement from early childhood education through K-12, postsecondary and beyond. The second, titled “Indiana’s Education and Workforce Imperative,” outlined a “top 10” list of policy priorities directly tied to the challenges and opportunities surfaced in the “Leaking Pipeline” white paper.

In recent months, it’s become clear that the call-to-action issued by the Chamber and other mission-aligned advocates has not gone unnoticed by state leaders. During the Chamber’s Indiana Legislative

Preview last fall, the leaders of all four caucuses noted that education/workforce issues would be prominent during the upcoming session with priorities that include “reinventing and making high school more relevant,” increasing access to work-based learning opportunities and proactive efforts aimed at better retaining Indiana’s college graduates in a talent-driven economy. More recently, the announcement of Gov. Holcomb’s legislative agenda and his 0State of the State address confirmed significant alignment across a number of policy priorities championed by the Chamber, including:

  • Early learning: expanding eligibility for Childcare and Development Fund vouchers and the On My Way Pre-K program, streamlining burdensome regulations for childcare providers and creating a $25 million Innovation Fund for employers that increase childcare access and affordability;
  • Postsecondary attainment: strengthening Indiana’s postsecondary pipeline by auto-enrolling eligible students in the state’s 21st Century Scholars program (provides up to four years of college tuition) and creating financial incentives to retain and place college graduates at Indiana companies; and
  • Regional economic development: allocating $500 million to fund another round of the Regional Economic Acceleration & Development Initiative (aka READI) to help communities address their identified talent attraction, development and retention priorities.

Admittedly, we are at the start and not the conclusion of a long legislative session with any number of potential pitfalls along the way. While it’s far too early in the process to take anything for granted – let alone declare victory – the early signs suggest that the voice of the Indiana Chamber and Hoosier business community have been heard and 2023 has the makings of a productive and impactful session.

Now comes the hard but worthwhile work of making good on that promise.

Jason Bearce is vice president of education & workforce development for the Indiana Chamber. He has been with the organization since 2018 and previously held senior leadership positions at the Indiana Commission for Higher Education and Indiana Department of Education.