Fishers One calls for “return to academics instead of activism”

By DIANE EATON
Guest Columnist

The heartbreaking events last week regarding the treatment of the family of Noah Shahnavaz by a Fishers High School teacher has been called into question by a local Fishers community group.

The late Elwood police officer, military veteran, and Fishers High School graduate tragically lost his life in the line of duty during a traffic stop on July 31. His younger brother returned to school for the first time last week to a class with a poster displaying “Defund the Police.”

This incident, along with many others over recent years, reiterates exactly what our organization has been hearing since our inception. The community has lost confidence with the Hamilton Southeastern School District, with its direction, and lack of focus on education. We are supporting four new board candidates this fall to change that around. Tiffany Pascoe, Juanita Albright, Dawn Lang, and Ben Orr are committed to getting HSE Schools back to the core of education, parental involvement, and administrative accountability.

Fishers One was formed in 2021 by a group of community leaders and parents that discovered a lack of focus on core education in the Hamilton Southeastern School District. The once top-rated school district in the state has seen a steady decline in academic rankings over recent years.

Fishers One believes the schools should be a place to educate the community and not a place for activism. Instead, in example after example, HSE has recently been making continued national headlines for creating conflict, division and disunity.

Fishers One calls on the entire community to hold the current school board accountable by electing new district school board members on Nov. 8.

About Fishers One
Fishers One is a grassroots, community based organization dedicated to restoring academic excellence in our schools, maintaining Fishers as a great place to live, and cultivating the next generations of community leaders. You can learn more about Fishers One and how to get involved at fishersone.org and at Facebook.com/FishersOne.