news-record.com

unless there are buses that are falling apart then we should put off for another year.. however, it is possible that less kids will drive in hs due to economy and buses will be too crowded, plus if we get 1000 new kids that would make a difference also

They should be trying to reduce the number of buses.

In order to reduce the number of buses, then let kids go to their neighborhood schools - stop the cross city busing that goes on from Eastern <-> Page and from Andrews <-> Southwest.

Also, get rid of half of the magnet programs and make parents provide transportation to non-neighborhood schools.

Did I just hear someone say neighborhood schools?

Don't make me come out of retirement. That would be your punishment if I hear that phrase ever again.

Jeff Harris, director of the schools transportation department, explained the situation a little more for me. When the school system opened Northern high, middle and elementary in 2007 they brought 10 buses back into service that had previously been parked because of they aged out according to state standards.
They were still being used as spare buses.
The state has to OK the use of retired buses and it requires school systems to buy new buses to replace them within 18 months. That’s the case here.
Harris says the buses are still in good working order and will return to the reserve list.
Should the state lift these types of restrictions during the economic crisis? Or would that contradict the intent of the law, putting a dollar limit on student safety?

Completely agree with the above post.
Schools should provide bus service to neighborhood schools only.
If parents decide they want their kids to go to a non-neighborhood school they can provide their own transportation.

safety has to come first, but the standards need to be reviewed to make sure that they are appropriate. We don't want kids on unsafe busses, but if they are safe as reserves, aren't they safe for regular use?

Northern or the GCS transportation department also took buses from other schools increasing students ride times and making it extremely difficult for our buses to complete the routes in time to get all of the students to school on time.

No students should not be on a bus 3 hours a day!!

Why.....were the need for school buses not considered prior to the opening of a new school?

I think there are a lot of things that can be done in our transportation system to free up buses .

Buy vans to transport less than 15 students for Magnet programs....if there is a state law against it we need to look into the law....At least buy some smaller more fuel efficient buses.

I am sick of watching 2 children in Gibsonville boarding a full size bus headed for Guilford College and arriving there 35 minutes later.

Yet...my child spends 3 hours a day on a bus with standing room only and goes to the closest high school just 10 minutes away!!

Buying Thomas built buses puts people to work locally.

These local employees buy homes, cars, eat at our restaurants, purchase local retail items.

The only way this economy is going to get out of the doldrums is when the citizens start buying again. And putting dollars in local pockets'll eventually find it's way into others. Something about economics I believe.

Lease 'em, buy 'em over time to lessen an immediate budget strain, but do it. Our children's lives depend on it.

What about spending the money that is spent on buses and fuel on teacher assistants. That puts money in peoples pockets and is also investing in a positive way for the future instead of ruining our enviroment and increasing our dependancy on fossil fuels.

Yeah bubba.
Lots of ways to look at this.

Parent,

Are you using hyperbole or are your children really having to stand up on the bus? If this is true then I need to know and the schools have something to fix immediately.

Good Point on standing,

Also I will never again support buying ultra large passenger school buses. I am sick of the sleight of hand bus routes where kids spend more than 2 hours a day on a bus. What they learn on the bus, well it sickens me. Then there is the harassment and bullying on the bus that the poor drivers are unable to control when you have 70 kids crammed together, some on the floor.

YES I AM VENTING, but guess what I also am responsible for it and I am sick of it.
Garth

I think that many parents think bussing needs to be addressed, per magnet schools, after school tutoring etc. There are many buses that are overcrowded- sometimes due to the HUGE bookbags that the kids carry. You can't put 3 17 years old boys and 3 bookbags on one bench.. doesn't work.

We need vans, not buses to transport the one or two magnet school kids that fill our busses, and not the buses for hire. That is fine when money is there, but not when we are cutting things other places.

In addition, the regional supervisors and districts is an expense that I am not sure we can afford. Yes, its the plan from Mo, but plans might have to change in tough times. I want supplies and teachers and books, not another layer of bureaucracy that will insulate the man in charge. I have read varied reports on the pros and cons.

One of the keys to dealing with the issue of buses and the costs of busing is neighborhood schools. We spend tons of money on gas, buses, etc. to ensure that we have the "appropriate" socioeconomic and racial mixtures at our schools so that some folks will have a warm fuzzy feeling.

Parents buy homes in no small part based on the quality of the local school. It is paternalistic at best for 11 members of the BOE (or even a bare majority of 6) to override parental decisions and send their children to other schools miles away.

If we are going to change the way things are done, we need parents to come to school board meetings, send emails, etc. and voice their opposition to busing and push for neighborhood schools.

Best regards,

Paul Daniels

Paul,

I appreciate your post - and I share your opinion. Unfortunately coming to board meetings and expressing your opinions means little to the board as a whole.

Prime example - over 800 people overfilled the Southwest High auditorium to protest when the board was first considering the High Point Choice Plan. Over 800 people - all opposed. In contrast about 2 people showed up at the forum at Central High School and spoke in favor of it.

What did the board do? They voted it in and the number of families who fled High Point for other schools (both private and within the county - namely NW) was tremendous.

The busing continues in High Point (and with test scores continuing to decline) and busing is still prevalent in the Page / Eastern area.

Brian,

Yes the kids stand up....when parents complain
the students are made to sit on each other
"Find a seat somewhere"...yells the bus driver...

Two middle school students can barely sit in a seat together...yet when someone complains about them standing...they are made to sit three to a seat....sometimes in the floor....

You try this on a one-way 35 minute ride from Gibsonville to Greensboro before the first student is dropped off......everyday....

We wonder why the students fuss on the bus?

Come to Eastern Middle and get behind a bus heading toward Greensboro...you will get all the video you want.....

Spoken like a true Liberal, Bubba.

I tend to agree with the Anonymous who posted after BLJ. Only I would spend the money on buss assistants to bring some order to the chaos on our buses. Driver should drive. Period.

Have you ever tried to concentrate while driving with 5 young children in a car? Imagine trying to drive a bus with some of the worst behaved kids in GCS.

And especially, every bus should be equipped with cameras if they don't have them already.

Garth, Paul, Brian....Are all our buses currently equipped with cameras?