Purdue Polytechnic High School (PPHS) Downtown will take residence in its permanent location inside the former P.R. Mallory factory building in the 3000 block of East Washington Street after renovations are completed in mid-2019. In addition, school officials are nearing completion of their plans to open a second charter high school on Indianapolis’ north side, expanding their ability to serve urban high school students.
The goal of PPHS is to make secondary education more engaging for students who are not on track to further their education in traditional high schools, and place them on a path to college, particularly in technology majors.
The second Polytechnic high school was approved by Indianapolis’s Charter School Board on Monday, June 27, 2018; however, a location has yet to be determined.
PPHS is partnered with Indian Public Schools (IPS). Indianapolis-area charter schools operate independently from most district policies but can receive access to some services like bussing and cafeteria dining. In exchange, charter schools’ academic achievements count toward IPS’ final accountability grade from the state. Mary Ann Sullivan, commissioner of Indiana Public Schools (IPS) voiced her support of the IPS-PPHS partnership during the November school board meeting.
Purdue Polytechnic opened its first Indianapolis charter school in 2017, with a first-year class of 150 students in a 25,690-square-foot space at Circle Centre Mall that was previously used by Brown Mackie College.