Tony Bennett (superintendent)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Tony Bennett (born 1960) is an American educator and former government official. A member of the Republican Party, Bennett was elected
Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction The superintendent of public instruction was an elected officer in the state government of Indiana. The official was an elected member of the executive branch of government and worked with the state Board of Education as head of the Indiana Depa ...
in 2008. He lost reelection to Democrat
Glenda Ritz Glenda Neubauer Ritz (born 1954) is an American educator and politician who formerly served as the former Superintendent of Public Instruction for Indiana. She was elected in 2012, defeating incumbent Superintendent Tony Bennett. She was the fir ...
in the 2012 election. Bennett was later appointed
Florida Commissioner of Education The Florida Department of Education (FLDOE) is the state education agency of Florida. It governs public education and manages funding and testing for local educational agencies (school boards). It is headquartered in the Turlington Building ( ...
in 2012, a position he held until 2013.


Early life

Tony Bennett was born in
Jeffersonville, Indiana Jeffersonville is a city and the county seat of Clark County, Indiana, Clark County, Indiana, United States, situated along the Ohio River. Locally, the city is often referred to by the abbreviated name Jeff. It lies directly across the Ohio Riv ...
in 1960, and grew up in the neighboring town of Clarksville. As a child, Bennett attended St. Anthony of Padua Catholic School before attending and graduating from
Our Lady of Providence Junior-Senior High School Our Lady of Providence High School is a coed Catholic high school in Clarksville, Indiana, in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Indianapolis. The school first opened on September 12, 1951. Providence was recognized as a Blue Ribbon School of Exce ...
in his teenage years. Though Bennett later became a Republican, he grew up in a Democratic household, as his father was a
blue-collar A blue-collar worker is a person who performs manual labor or skilled trades. Blue-collar work may involve skilled or unskilled labor. The type of work may involve manufacturing, retail, warehousing, mining, carpentry, electrical work, custodia ...
Democrat while his mother was a
Kennedy Kennedy may refer to: People * Kennedy (surname), including any of several people with that surname ** Kennedy family, a prominent American political family that includes: *** Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. (1888–1969), American businessman, investor, ...
Democrat from
New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...
.


Education and career

Bennett received his
Doctor of Education Doctor, Doctors, The Doctor or The Doctors may refer to: Titles and occupations * Physician, a medical practitioner * Doctor (title), an academic title for the holder of a doctoral-level degree ** Doctorate ** List of doctoral degrees awarded ...
and Indiana Superintendent's License from
Spalding University Spalding University is a private Catholic university in Louisville, Kentucky. It is affiliated with the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth. History Spalding University traces its origins to "Nazareth Academy", one of the oldest educational institu ...
in 2005; his Certification in Secondary Administration and Supervision from
Indiana University Southeast Indiana University Southeast (locally known as IU Southeast or IUS) is a public university in New Albany, Indiana, New Albany, Indiana. It is a regional campus of Indiana University. History The Indiana University Falls City Area Center was ...
in 1994; his Master of Science in Secondary Education from Indiana University Southeast in 1988; and his Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education from Indiana University Southeast in 1984. Bennett served as a teacher, coach and administrator. *2001–2007:
New Albany, Indiana New Albany is a city in New Albany Township, Floyd County, Indiana, United States, situated along the Ohio River, opposite Louisville, Kentucky. The population was 37,841 as of the 2020 census. The city is the county seat of Floyd County. It ...
Floyd County Consolidated Schools – assistant superintendent for administration and operations * Greater Clark County Schools - superintendent *1999–2001: NAFCCS – principal of
Charles Allen Prosser School of Technology Charles Allen Prosser School of Technology (Prosser) is a vocational school in New Albany, Indiana. The school was named in honor of New Albany native Charles Allen Prosser, the "Father of Vocational Education" in the United States. Courses Pro ...
*1997–1999:
Scott County Scott County is the name of eleven counties in the United States of America: *Scott County, Arkansas *Scott County, Illinois *Scott County, Indiana *Scott County, Iowa, the most populous county on the list *Scott County, Kansas, the least populous ...
School District 2 – principal of Scottsburg High School *1993–1997: SCSD2 – assistant principal of SHS/ basketball coach *1992–1993: SCSD2 – assistant to the superintendent/ basketball coach *1991–1992: SCSD2 – biology teacher/basketball coach *1990–1991: Mohawk Local Schools (Sycamore, Ohio) – biology teacher/basketball coach *1983–1990: Providence High School – biology/science teacher (basketball coach 1987–1990) In 2010, the Indiana Chamber of Commerce named him Government Leader of the Year and, in 2011, The Fordham Institute named him Education Reform Idol. In 2016, Bennett was caucused by the
Clark County, Indiana Clark County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Indiana, located directly across the Ohio River from Louisville, Kentucky. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 121,093. The county seat is Jeffer ...
Republican Party to serve on the Clark County, Indiana County Council. The next day, he was unable to take office because he did not meet the residency requirement. However, the individual that was caucused on to the Council resigned months late, Bennett was re-appointed to the position. Following the election of his successor in 2018, Bennett was appointed to fill a different vacancy on the Council that occurred when Councilman Terry Conway was elected as Clark County Recorder.


State superintendent

Bennett was narrowly elected Indiana State Superintendent in
2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...
, succeeding retiring four-term incumbent Suellen Reed. He was defeated for re-election in an upset. He made education reform a key platform of his tenure. During Bennett's term, student achievement improved on several key academic indicators. Scores on the state's
ISTEP Indiana Statewide Testing for Educational Progress-Plus (usually referred to simply as ISTEP or ISTEP+) was an annual No Child Left Behind test designed by the Indiana Department of Education to measure students' mastery of basic skills, particula ...
+ exam, Advanced Placement pass percentages and graduate rates reached new highs. Some criticized Bennett and his wife in 2011 because of her involvement with a charter school oversight program at Marian University. The state awarded a contract to Marian to establish a "Turnaround Leadership Academy" to train transformational school leaders. Officials noted the contract was awarded through a competitive request for proposals process. Despite receiving nearly hundred thousand dollars in out-of-state campaign money, Bennett ended up losing the 2012 superintendent race to
Glenda Ritz Glenda Neubauer Ritz (born 1954) is an American educator and politician who formerly served as the former Superintendent of Public Instruction for Indiana. She was elected in 2012, defeating incumbent Superintendent Tony Bennett. She was the fir ...
. Then President of
Purdue University Purdue University is a Public university#United States, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, United States, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded ...
,
Mitch Daniels Mitchell Elias Daniels Jr. (born April 7, 1949) is an American Academic administration, academic administrator, businessman, author, and retired politician who served as the 49th governor of Indiana from 2005 to 2013. A Republican Party (United ...
, claimed that teachers used illegal tactics to defeat Bennett.


Controversy

In November 2018, it was reported that Bennett, who directed policies in 2011 that eventually led to a state takeover of the
Gary Community School Corporation Gary Community School Corporation is a school district headquartered in Gary, Indiana. The school district includes the majority of Gary. History In 2017, Gary Community Corp became the first school system in Indiana involved in a state tak ...
in 2017, has an ownership stake in the company selected by the GOP-controlled legislature to manage the takeover with a potential to earn $11.4 million. After discovering the conflict of interest in Bennett's ownership in the management company, state and local lawmakers immediately called for a repudiation of the state's contract with his company.


Allegations of wire fraud

Bennett was investigated for misuse of public resources in his 2012 election, which he lost to Glenda Ritz. In July 2014, the State Ethics Commission accepted Bennett's offer to settle the ethics charges by paying a $5,000 fine. Publicly, the commission admonished Bennett for minor ethics violations, but internal documents obtained from the inspector general's office listed more than 100 potential violations of federal wire fraud law by Bennett or his employees. In May 2015, Marion County prosecutors had reviewed the inspector general's internal documents, and declined to pursue charges against Bennett.


Grade manipulation and resignation

In the fall of 2012, Bennett, as Indiana superintendent of schools, changed the "A–F" school rating system so that Christel House Academy, a
charter school A charter school is a school that receives government funding but operates independently of the established state school system in which it is located. It is independent in the sense that it operates according to the basic principle of autono ...
run by a major Republican donor which had donated $2.8 million to Republicans including $130,000 to Bennett himself, would receive a top A rating. Emails suggested a focus on just the one school. Bennett's email quoted him as saying, "We have NO chance of advancing accountability during the session with this problem in front of us." Subsequent emails showed his staff working to get the charter school up to an A rating. Bennett defended the rating change, saying the prior rating system disadvantaged Christel House because the school instructed students from kindergarten through 10th grade. Bennett said the same rating changes applied to other schools spanning nontraditional grade ranges. On December 12, 2012, the
Florida Board of Education The Florida Board of Education, also known as the State Board of Education (SBE), is a committee composed of members appointed by the Florida governor to guide and direct the public K-12, community college and state college education in the U.S. st ...
unanimously selected Bennett as the state's new education commissioner. On August 1, 2013, Bennett announced his resignation due to the scandal surrounding Christel House Academy, citing if he stayed on as commissioner it would "be a distraction to the children of Florida."


Personal life

Bennett's first married in 1981, but he divorced his wife in the mid-1990s. In 1996, he married his partner Tina, who he had first met the previous year when Tina was the girls’ basketball coach at Salem High School. He has had four children, including a set of triplets, and three grandchildren. On April 1, 2022, Bennett's daughter Elizabeth was shot and killed at her Sellersburg home. Police identified the
suspect In law enforcement jargon, a suspect is a known person accused or suspected of committing a crime. Police and reporters in the United States often use the word suspect as a jargon when referring to the perpetrator of the offense (perp in dated U. ...
as Elizabeth's husband, Mac Lewis, and he was subsequently charged for her murder. Elizabeth's 11-year-old daughter and her friend were inside the house during the shooting. Lewis pled not guilty to the charges. In 2023, Lewis was found guilty and sentenced to 100 years in prison. After the verdict, Bennett stated "After 18 months of absolute hell, this is the first day of justice for our beautiful daughter, their mom, our two grandchildren and Emery who endured this tragedy."


References


External links


Facebook
* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Bennett, Tony Date of birth missing (living people) Living people Educators from Indiana Florida commissioners of education Florida Republicans Indiana Republicans Indiana University Southeast alumni Marian University (Indiana) people People from Clark County, Indiana People from Tallahassee, Florida Spalding University alumni Superintendents of public instruction of Indiana 1960 births