Date of Award

Spring 5-1-2026

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Educational Leadership

First Advisor

Steve Gruenert

Second Advisor

Todd Bess

Third Advisor

Jennifer McCormick

Abstract

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the world of educational legislation and how it is crafted, molded, and signed into law in the state of Indiana. The study examined the key legislative players, the machinations of the Statehouse, the educational organizations and their lobbyists, the national landscape, and other factors at play. To find the answers to the research questions in this study, the researcher interviewed multiple Indiana legislators. An effort was made to sit down with elected officials from both chambers who serve on the educational committees. According to the research, state and federal legislatures are becoming increasingly more active in creating laws that impact schools and their students. This research sought to understand the dynamics of those relationships and create a greater understanding of how these laws are made. The participants were only from the state of Indiana, and they have served in the state legislature for at least four years. These participants volunteered to participate in the study of their own free will. All interviews were recorded and transcribed by the researcher and kept in a secure location. Each participant was sent a transcript of their interview for their approval before it was used in the study. The participants’ identities were kept confidential to the best ability of the researcher. Once the interviews were completed, the researcher examined the transcripts, went through multiple rounds of coding, and organized the data into themes and sub-themes. Emerging themes included the major and fringe characters, the institutional structures and power dynamics, misconceptions, and legislative strategy and political gamesmanship. Additional sub-themes included other Indiana legislators, the constituents, the caucus, lobbyists, educational associations, party leadership, part-time legislature, last minute legislation, the dynamics between state and federal politics, the relationships between democrats and republicans, the control and influence of party leaders, how involved and informed constituents are, compromises, incremental changes, and charter schools in Indiana. Findings include communication from school leaders with their elected officials about potential legislation and the impact on their communities, the effectiveness of a full-time legislature versus the current parttime system in Indiana, the contrast between public perceptions of the Statehouse and legislative system versus the reality of what actually happens, and the political divide on the topic of charter schools in Indiana. Implications include increasing satisfaction among public school leaders with educational legislation in Indian and strengthening communication between the elected officials and the constituents they represent.

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