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HLS Recap: Education Day

8/19/25

Every year, the Hoosier Leadership Series (HLS) devotes one class to learning about education in Indiana. It provides students with an opportunity to take a deeper look at the realities of local school board elections, the materials taught in the classroom, and alternative education pathways. This year, we were joined by six field experts who shared on topics ranging from homeschooling to educational freedom. Read below for a glimpse of what the day looked like!

We were excited to welcome the following guests to our “Education Day” class:

Representative Becky Cash gave us a look behind the curtain at the efforts to bring transparency and accountability to local school boards. Her work on partisan school board races reflects a growing recognition that the values being taught in classrooms are not neutral—and neither should our elections be.
Former Representative Cindy Noe walked us through the deeper history of American education, reminding us how far we’ve drifted from a system rooted in local control, moral grounding, and civic responsibility.
Betsy Wiley, with the Institute for Quality Education, brought the numbers and strategy. Her insights on school vouchers and enrollment trends made clear that families are hungry for options—and that the momentum is on the side of educational freedom.
Lifewise Academy’s powerful presentation showed us what’s possible when communities creatively integrate Bible education into the public school day—legally. Their model is transforming lives, one school district at a time. We are also grateful for their sponsorship of Education Day.
Kylene Varner gave us a glimpse into Indiana’s thriving homeschool movement, which continues to grow as parents seek greater control over what and how their children learn.
Brian Wheeler, owner of Vertical Immersive, graciously offered to host this month’s class at his facility and spoke to the class about alternatives to higher education.

We are incredibly grateful for the many individuals who took time out of their day to speak to our class! We also want to extend a special thanks to our sponsors, who help make the Hoosier Leadership Series possible: Adler Law Firm, The Heritage Foundation, LifeWise Academy, B23 Strategies, Americans for Prosperity, Ash and Oak, and Samaritan Ministries.

It’s not too early to start thinking about signing up for next year’s HLS class! If you’re interested in joining us next year, you can apply here or email HLS Director Valerie Swack with any questions: valerie@hoosierfamily.org.This class is an excellent way to learn how to apply your faith in a more effective way within the public square. We highly encourage you to consider participating next year!

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Indiana Music Teacher Wins Partial Victory in Religious Discrimination Case!

8/15/25

In 2018, John Kluge was forced to resign from Brownsburg Community School after his request for a religious exemption to the school’s mandatory “pronoun policy” was revoked. The policy required teachers to call students by their “preferred gender” and name, denying biological reality and biblical truth. John requested to call students by their last name as an alternative to the pronoun policy, which the school initially allowed. But after a year, they revoked his reasonable religious accommodation, ending his teaching career and violating his religious freedom.

IFI’s allied attorneys, Michael Cork, Roscoe Stovall, and Kevin Green, led the charge to defend Kluge’s religious liberty before the case was picked up by our national partner Alliance Defending Freedom. Michael Cork continues to serve as John’s local counsel.

Over the past six years, John has faced a tumultuous legal journey. In 2019, he filed a lawsuit against Brownsburg in a district court, which ultimately ruled in favor of the school. In 2021, three years after the case was appealed to the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, it was sent back to the district court for reevaluation after the US Supreme Court’s decision in Groff v. DeJoy, which “increased the burden employers must meet to deny religious accommodations.”

IFI General Counsel Josh Hershberger filed an amicus brief in support of John, which stated:

“In recent years, IFI has noticed a growing trend of public schools ignoring the constitutional rights of parents, teachers, and students. Education is foundational to the project of raising children and building a strong family; and students, teachers, and parents should not face discrimination by school officials because of their political or religious views. For these reasons, IFI has publicly supported John Kluge and the right of teachers generally to live out their faith in the public school environment while respecting differences and modeling citizenship in a plural society. IFI is gravely concerned that the District Court’s decision in this matter will be used as precedent for violating the religious beliefs and conscience rights of other teachers in Indiana.”

Unfortunately, the district court again denied John’s petition. ADF filed a second appeal with the 7th Circuit in July of last year, arguing that his request for religious accommodation did not impose “undue hardship” on the school.

This month, the Court acknowledged that the district “introduced nothing to show that a teacher using one’s last name resulted in ‘emotional distress’ under an objective standard. Even if emotional distress qualifies as an undue hardship, Groff requires the employer to prove both that there was a hardship, and that the accommodation caused that hardship.”

The school district must now face a jury for its treatment of John, and they could be held responsible for damages and attorney fees.

IFI is excited to see continued positive momentum in this case. This ruling is also good news for Steven Ressler, who was fired by IKEA over a similar pronoun policy. Read more about Ressler’s case and IFI’s involvement here.

Thank you for supporting IFI and enabling our Five Freedoms Project to defend Hoosiers’ religious liberty. We couldn’t do this important pro bono work without you.

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July in Review

July was a busy month for IFI! We traveled to Florida to attend Alliance Defending Freedom’s annual conference, where we explored legislative and legal opportunities to advance the cause of faith, family, and freedom in our state. After that, we traveled to Indianapolis for another annual conference, the Social Conservative Policy Conference (SoConCon), hosted by the Family Policy Alliance (FPA). Both of these events were informative, encouraging, and a wonderful opportunity to connect with family policy leaders from around the nation.

I was honored to welcome attendees to Indiana at the start of SoConCon. I was also given the opportunity to present an award to Rep. Chris Jeter for his statesmanship.

Indiana was proudly represented by Rep. Julie McGuire, who spoke on the opening night, as well as Rep. Tim Wesco, Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith, Rep. Marlin Stutzman, and Sen. Jim Banks, who spoke at the closing banquet. Our state is truly blessed to have such upstanding and courageous individuals representing us at the state and federal levels.

Josh Hershberger, IFI’s General Counsel and Director of our Church Ambassador Network (CAN), presented a panel on the pivotal US Supreme Court case US v. Skrmetti and parental rights and assisted with a workshop on media training. Watch a highlight here!

Our newly appointed Education Director, Martin Strother, was able to connect with education leaders across the country to discuss ways to expand and refine our education program.

This year, FPA presented the Minnery Legacy Award to all the executive directors of family policy councils around the nation to commend our efforts to advance the social conservative cause. I was honored to receive this award on behalf of our incredible team, friends, and partners in Indiana who pour into our organization to help us create an Indiana where life is cherished, religious freedom is upheld, and families can thrive.

Thank you for continuing to support our work!

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