Rebuilding Indianapolis with Input at Home

Profile: ALEESIA L. JOHNSON

Aleesia Johnson was perfectly content in her job as a charter school principal in 2015 when her superintendent asked her to take on a new role as innovation officer for Indianapolis Public Schools. The unexpected fork in the professional road marked just the next step upward for someone whose ultimate dream was becoming a school principal.

Four years onward, Johnson was tapped to become the Indianapolis superintendent, thanks to her vision for creating positive change in the 31,000-student urban school system.

Johnson, a native of Evansville, Ind., admits: “I had not envisioned myself as a superintendent.” She is the first Black woman to lead the district, although she is quick to add that she is not the first Black woman capable of doing this job. She sees herself in the students, and she hopes they see themselves in her.

“Our kids, our girls particularly, need to know that it’s possible to be in positions of significant leadership, positions with power, and that they have the qualities to do this work,” she says. “So it matters when I show up in a school, and I can talk to our high schoolers about my path.”

Those students include three of Johnson’s own four children who attend the same high school in their mother’s district.

David Dressler, a retired superintendent and consultant who mentored Johnson previously, points to the significance of Johnson leading a minority-majority district. “She’s an inspiration for staff and students alike,” he says.

Perhaps the most defining event of Johnson’s tenure as superintendent so far is the launch of the Rebuilding Stronger initiative. The school board approved a $410 million capital referendum in late 2022, and Indianapolis voters approved Johnson’s vision the following spring.

Rebuilding Stronger is a broad effort to reorganize schools and provide equal access to educational opportunities for students, regardless of where they live in Indianapolis. The district is making improvements to more than 20 schools in poor condition, while converting its K-8 schools into separate K-5 and 6-8 schools to improve student access to course offerings and programs such as band and advanced math.

Johnson also oversees the district’s rezoning to consolidate the schools into four quadrants. Within each quadrant, students will have access to similar resources: a STEM school, an International Baccalaureate school and a visual and performing arts option.

The plan is ambitious. “It’s important that students get a robust experience in school and see the myriad of gifts and strengths that they have,” she says.

Reconfiguring a district’s attendance zones can be contentious, but the superintendent wanted to make sure students in every neighborhood could access higher quality programs, says Evan Hawkins, former school board chair. Johnson’s commitment to equity and access for all students, he adds, is one of her strengths in an urban district that’s historically faced significant challenges.

The community accepted the change in direction in part because they have responded well to her calm, steady leadership style, according to board members.

With her household populated by current students willing to share their perspectives on school operations, Johnson never loses sight of the reason for her hard work.

She says: “Even on the hardest day, I say, ‘I get to do this job. I get to be connected with our kids, to be pushed and challenged to do this, to make sure they have what they need to be successful.’”

Jennifer Larson is a freelance writer in Nashville, Tenn.