A Randolph County judge has blocked Indiana from dissolving Union School Corp. under a law that would have forced the Modoc district to close after the 2026-27 school year.
Special Judge Brian Hutchison granted the district's request for summary judgment in Randolph Superior Court, deciding the case without a trial. The ruling invalidates part of the law enacted in 2025 and is a major win for a school community that has spent more than a year fighting to remain open.
Union officials sued the state and Gov. Mike Braun, arguing lawmakers violated the Indiana Constitution by inserting the district's dissolution into a property-tax bill without holding a public hearing. The provision was added to Senate Enrolled Act 1 during the final weeks of the 2025 session, and Braun signed the measure days later. Under the law, Union's students and funding were to be divided between Monroe Central Schools in Randolph County and Blue River Valley Schools in Henry County.
Union operates a single school building in Modoc. This academic year, 259 students attend its in-person schools, up from 249 the year before, while about 4,033 students are enrolled in its three virtual programs.
State Rep. J.D. Prescott, a Republican from Union City who wrote the closure amendment, cited low test scores and declining enrollment as concerns when the law was debated. Union leaders have disputed that picture, saying in-person students perform differently from students in the online programs. The governor's representatives and Prescott did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the ruling.
