Dr. Matt Kegley on start of schools at HSE 2026-2027

HSE students head back to class Wednesday, Aug. 5, and Superintendent Dr. Matt Kegley joins Larry Lannan to preview a school year with more moving parts than most. Kegley — heading into his first opening day as permanent superintendent after two decades in the district — covers the new bell-to-bell device law and how HSE will enforce it, written caps on screen time in the youngest grades, the final year of "bring your own device," and how families are adjusting to new attendance boundaries. He also digs into the money: why consumable material and athletic participation fees are returning, what was cut to reach $7.7 million in budget reductions, and why HSE is asking voters in November to replace the referendum they approved in 2023. If it fails, Kegley says, the district is looking at roughly a $10 million shortfall over two years — and can't go back to the ballot until 2028. Plus: rebuilding the relationship with the teachers association ahead of bargaining, expanded welding and dual-credit programs under Innovate 2028, and a new app that lets parents track the bus. Sponsored by Citizens State Bank — member FDIC, equal housing lender. Learn more at mycsb-in.com/larry or stop by the Fishers branch inside the Thomas A. Weaver Municipal Complex. More local news at LarryInFishers.com