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Youngstown school board OKs payment in lieu of busing 5
By Denise Dick
Youngstown
The city school board authorized payment for five Cardinal Mooney High School students rather than transporting them to school.
The board’s resolution, approved unanimously at a board meeting Tuesday, says that the district has determined that transportation of the five students between home and school is impracticable even though the students are eligible for transportation by the board.
Earlier this year, Randy Rair, assistant superintendent of the Diocese of Youngstown’s Office of Catholic Schools, sent a letter to the district about transportation. It said that the diocese schools are considering requesting a financial and routing audit of the city schools transportation department.
“The children and families of our schools who reside in the Youngstown City School District have been forced to deal with tremendous aggravation and disruption of their education because of mistakes made by” the city schools transportation department, the letter said.
Rair said 28 Mooney students have been denied transportation.
The payment authorized by the board would be about $200 per student per year. The five students listed in the resolution are Loren Cancel, Cody and Dustin Congemi, Shantrele M. Jones and Turei Williams.
Those students can accept the payment or request mediation through the Ohio Department of Education. They could not be reached to comment.
The “reason for the impracticality of transporting such students is the number of students to be transported and the cost of providing transportation in terms of equipment, maintenance, personnel and administration.”
Youngstown schools provides transportation for high-school students who live more than four miles from their school. That distance is measured by the shortest driving route, said Superintendent Connie Hathorn.
The remaining Mooney students don’t live beyond the four miles, officials said.
“Most schools don’t transport high-school students,” said Lock P. Beachum Sr., school board president. “I’d like to do it — the money is not there.”
Board member Andrea Mahone said the district cares about all of the children in the city. “But our first concern is the students in the Youngstown City Schools,” she said.
In other business, the board authorized the execution of an agreement for professional design services with MS Consultants Inc. of Youngstown for the Rayen Stadium renovation project.
The school district announced a campaign last week to raise money for the $3 million project which would provide the school system’s only home stadium. Of the $3 million goal, $1.2 million has been raised.
The board also recognized Nora McDevitt, a sixth-grade teacher at Volney Rogers Sixth and Seventh Grade Academy. McDevitt won a Chevrolet GREEN Educator Award from Earth Force and the General Motors Foundation.
It recognizes teachers, college professors and volunteers who integrate environmental education into school and community programs.