Board okays fee for extra-curricular transportation

GUSTINE – Taking the bus may not be something students in the Gustine Unified School District can take for granted next year.

Faced with a budget crisis caused by state funding reductions and declining enrollment, school board members last week approved transportation fees for student-athletes at Gustine High School and reviewed a plan which would sharply curtail home-to-school busing if the state substantially reduces transportation funding for local districts.

The severity of the situation was underscored by the board’s decision to issue layoff notices to its seven bus drivers – a safeguard in the event that the district is forced to cut back its transportation program. They will be called back as we determine what transportation will be offered,” said Superintendent Gail McWilliams.

She said the district currently receives about $190,000 a year from the state earmarked for student transportation, and chips in another $210,000 of general fund money to cover the costs. The state is considering cuts of up to two-third in its transportation allocation, she said, and if that happens Gustine Unified will no longer be able to afford the busing it now offers.

Transportation Director Cheryl Pometta presented a plan which cut the overall bus budget to $250,000 – but would eliminate most in-town busing other than for middle school students and would establish bus stops in the country rather than going home-to-home.

“We have a huge spread in where our kids are,” Pometta said. “We would gladly go up and down every road if we could.”

The proposal would put more responsibility back on the parents, she and McWilliams said.

Some students would face a walk of up to a mile to the nearest bus stop if the proposal was enacted. The distance, the winter fog and liability questions were among the concerns voiced by trustees about the proposal, which was presented as a preliminary look at what steps the district might be forced to consider.

McWilliams said she would have to fully research the liability implications, but said her initial understanding was that the district’s liability for students begins at the bus stop.

Another pitfall might be the unintended financial consequences if reduced transportation led to lower attendance rates and, in turn, revenue losses, one bus driver in the audience pointed out.

McWilliams could not discount that possibility entirely.

“Would we take a hit on average daily attendance? Possibly,” she said. “If we got to a point where there was greatly reduced transportation, we would have to conduct a public relations campaign to get information out to families about what we have to do and why. These would be big changes for our community.”

The district is not required to provide home-to-school transportation other than to special education students, Pometta noted.

No action was taken on the transportation alternative. McWilliams said the board will be asked to make a decision on its 2009-10 transportation program at its July 22 meeting.

“This is just a first look at something, to talk about what the consequences are and what it might mean for students,” McWilliams said.

Transportation fee

The board did approve an extra-curricular transportation fee for students at Gustine High School.

Student-athletes will pay $40 a season, with a cap of $100 a year, to help defray transportation costs.

Discounts are offered for siblings.

Booster clubs may offset some of those expenses, said Principal Dennis Shaw.

“It is a tough step to take, charging students for something they love to do,” he commented.

Shaw said the school would be as flexible as possible in situations of financial hardship. “Affordability is a big concern,” he reflected. “We want to be firm, but at the same time the last thing we want is to have students not participating because of costs.”

Shaw said school officials are considering other steps to lower costs as well, such as requiring teams to fund-raise for tournament entry fees and transportation and not providing district transportation to games at nearby Orestimba High for sports other than football.

“Those are things we will be talking about, and seeing what makes sense for us,” Shaw said.