Schools try to fix busing problems

By Ashley Luthern

aluthern@vindy.com

YOUNGSTOWN

Several parents of students at Stambaugh Charter Academy confronted city school officials about busing problems Tuesday and were told problems should be resolved next week.

Lori Cruz said her 12-year-old son, Brandon Gonzalez, waits for the bus in front of an abandoned building and garage on the East Side. Every day, the bus is late, she said.

Class begins at 9:15 a.m., and the bus doesn’t arrive until 9:45 a.m. or later. Cruz said her son arrives at school about 10 a.m. and doesn’t return home until 6 p.m.

“A lot of kids have stopped riding the bus because of the problems, and others have been pulled from the charter school and sent to the city schools,” Cruz said.

Superintendent Connie Hathorn said the bus stop would be moved and the route examined. He said the district began new bus routes this year and many were being revised.

“We revamped the routes for the betterment of the city school students,” Hathorn said, adding that the goal was to increase efficiency as the district restructured city schools.

The Youngstown Board of Education had a special meeting Tuesday, where it spent about 90 minutes in executive session discussing transportation personnel.

After the meeting adjourned, Hathorn and several board members met with the parents, children and Stambaugh Principal Alan Harper.

Vivian Rodriguez shared Cruz’s concerns and said it affects the 15 to 20 children who ride the bus regularly.

“Our children are getting there late, so they’re missing class. They’re eating breakfast and taking a test. It’s wrong,” she said.

Harper said the problem appears to be one bus route, and he was asking the district for help in a timely manner. Many parents complained that they had sent emails and called but did not receive any response.

Board member Andrea Mahone apologized to the parents and students and said the problem has been citywide.

“We are sorry for the mix-up,” she said. “We want to ensure every child is safe and gets to school on time. We’ve had a few glitches.”

Mahone said the district’s transportation office now has four people answering phones and still can’t keep up with calls.

“There are new buses, new routes and a new system. We’re trying to fix it citywide,” she said.

Tension bubbled to the surface during the meeting, though.

Rodriguez said it seemed that her child is being penalized for attending a charter school instead of a city school.

“Our children aren’t dollar signs,” she said, referring to the amount of money given to schools per student from the state.

Hathorn said that per state law, the district does need to provide transportation to charter students, but “our kids come first.”

State law permits districts to prioritize busing in favor of public schools. Hathorn said he has to put the 4,000 public school students first.

A transportation stipend of about $200 is available at the end of the school year to charter school parents who provide their own transportation.

“I understand we have concerns. We’re working to try to correct that,” Hathorn said. “... Our contract is to provide transportation.”