Talawanda buses roared to a rough start this year, but district administrators say that problems are being ironed out.
This year, students are no longer being bused to the high school or away sports games. Most students who live within 2 miles of any school no longer qualify for busing either. Now, high school students have the option to drive or be driven to school.
This led to a traffic jam on the first day of school that took nearly an hour to clear, said the district’s director of communications, Holli Hansel.
Since then, Hansel said administrators have allowed parents to drop off their children up to 45 minutes early at the high school and now allow parents to park in what used to be the teaching parking lot. Teachers now park where the buses used to go, she said.
The plan was introduced last year as part of a cost savings plan following the defeat of a tax levy by voters. The plan cut transportation services to align with the minimum requirements of the Ohio Department of Education.
Hansel said the district paid Petermann Busing more than $2.5 million over the course of the 2022-23 school year for busing fees. The district spent an additional $300,000 for fuel fees.
Hansel went on to say the district hopes to save about $300,000 throughout the course of the school year but stressed that the numbers will be more concrete as the year progresses.
Hansel said that busing routes have changed as many as three times per day as administrators struggle to keep up with the changing number of students requesting bus service. Hansel said parents and guardians have been calling school administrators non-stop so far this year with concerns around busing.
“This has been changing every day since we started the first day of school,” Hansel said.
Many parents have been forced to make an extra stop on their morning and afternoon commute while others have arranged carpools for their children.
Head boys soccer coach and social studies teacher Heath Kelly said his players have adapted well to the lack of busing for away matches, with many carpooling to save on gas for away games.
Kelly said he was worried about inexperienced drivers and the possibility of traffic accidents on the way to matches.
“I feel like it’s only a matter of time,” Kelly said. “It’s not a matter of if, but when.”
Some away games are as far as an hour away.
Kelly said he hasn’t noticed a significant increase in tardiness or absences compared to last year.
“I’ll be honest, I think it’s smoother in the mornings because of the later start time and zero bell,” he said.
First period starts a half hour later than last year.
Some students with special needs who could ride the bus last year no longer qualify.
Student services director Stephanie Aerni said the district’s busing of special needs students is in line with the Ohio Department of Education’s requirements. Aerni said only students with physical disabilities officially included in their Individualized Education Plans, or IEPs, now qualify for specialized busing at Talawanda.
In reality, Aerni says, the reduction in number of students bused with special needs isn’t a significant number, as the number of special needs busing wasn’t significant before the change in busing policy.
Talawanda director of transportation Michael Sokol did not respond to questions.
