Southern Ulster Times , Wednesday , August 31 , 2016 3
Highland tweaks bus stop locations
By MARK REYNOLDS mreynolds @ tcnewspapers . com
As summer draws to a close the Highland School Board is anticipating the opening of the 2016-17 school year . Doug Carter , Director of Transportation , briefed the board at their last meeting on his recommendations for bus routes for the upcoming year . He indicated that parents should have received his letter on bus stop changes that he is implementing within the district .
Carter said in May he observed that some of the bus runs were as long as 40 minutes and a few took 50 minutes . He said that besides the lengthy time for the kids and possible frustration from motorists sharing the roadways in the mornings and afternoons , he was primarily concerned with the safety of the children .
“ Bus accident statistics dating back decades show that the most dangerous part of school bussing is loading and unloading ,” he said . “ In fact , nine out of ten fatalities involving school busses has been with unloading and loading ; its not because a bus hits a dump truck or gets run over by a train , but unfortunately kids are vulnerable to their own bus or to passing motorists .” He said the changes he is implementing would also reduce the chance of bus sideswipes or accidents from a bus hitting a parked car while backing up in a cul-de-sac .
Carter said he has researched this matter in the records of the NYS Education Department and with the NYS Trooper Safety Institute . He said they recommend that distance between bus stops be between 1 / 10th of a mile to 2 / 10ths of a mile or 176 yards to 350 yards . By way of comparison he said the distance around the high school tack is 450 yards .
Carter said in recent years busses have been stopping at consecutive driveways only 25 feet apart or going into short dead ends or cul-de-sacs for the pickup and
Highlighting Lloyd business
This month Gary Pregno ( right ), of the Lloyd Economic Development Committee , presented a picture to Supervisor Paul Hansut , highlighting the business community in town , including Quality Cleaners , Pomo d ’ Oro Pizza , 3 Guys Pizza , Oyama Karate Dojo , Underground Coffee and Ales , The Real 3 Guys Pizza , The Cake Artist , Gina Marie ’ z Dance Academy , Verizon Wireless , Floyd Patterson Boxing Club and Verlise . discharge of students . He recommended to the board that the district establish the 1 / 10th of a mile distance , “ the lower end of the standard and to not have busses go into short dead ends if we don ’ t have to turn around .” Where needed he would retain a few turnaround options .
Carter noted that parents need to play a role in their child ’ s safety and that standards call for younger students walking 2 / 10ths of a mile to a bus stop and high school students up to ½ of a mile . He was not advocating for these standards but for a more gradual phase in of his recommended distances .
Carter said the 1 / 10th of a mile distances would reduce the number of bus stops for all grade levels by approximately 27 percent . He offered clarification : in 2015-16 about 91 % of Elementary school students had less than 1 / 10th of a mile to walk to their bus stop and with the reduced number of stops 87 % of Elementary students will be within the 1 / 10th distance and another 10 % will be within 1 / 10th to 2 / 10ths distance . Similarly , 87 % of Middle School students were within the 1 / 10th distance last year but that will drop to only 82 % with the reductions but still hits the 96 % mark for all at the 2 / 10ths distances . For High School students 95 % will be at or less than the 2 / 10th distance with the new change .
“ We realize these are changes that have to be made known to families and so I prepared a letter to send to all parents with the bus schedules … there is an explanation of these changes in the letter to them .” He said the changes will not allow the district to save on a bus run but the improvements in safety and less travel time are important . Carter indicated there would be an appeals system put in place to address any concerns before school starts . He expects there may be some accommodations made , especially along hazardous sections of Route 44 / 55 .
Board member Sue Gilmore said when she finds herself behind a school bus on her way to work she sees it stop at consecutive driveways , calling this practice “ nuts and I applaud you for trying to change this . Bully for you and good luck .”
Superintendent Deborah Haab anticipates there will be questions from parents on this matter . She said the change from “ door to door service may feel like a monumental shift ” but the administration supports Carter ’ s plan .
Emergency Plan update In her comments , Haab said the review and updates to the emergency plan as well as consideration of training of personnel is ongoing . She indicated that the cost of this required unfunded mandate is expected to exceed $ 10,000 .
The plan also requires that staff , including support staff , receive annual school safety and school violence prevention training , which also incorporates training in mental health , particularly in suicide prevention and post care in the event a student does take their own life . This training must be provided by September 15 , with most of the sessions done by current staff , however , there may be some additional costs if outside professionals are needed . Any new hires in the district must receive this training within 30 days of their employment .
Homeless training
Haab said on Aug . 3 the district received updates on regulations concerning homeless students at a meeting that included Haab , the Assistant Superintendent , the Personal Director , and the homeless liaison who is also the Registrar .
“ It was time well spent and gave us additional information on how to handle certain situations and what we are required to do in the event we have a student who is apparently homeless ,” she said , adding that the number of students who are deemed homeless is presently being compiled on a quarterly basis .
“ Last year we were about 28 to 30 by mid year and it went down a bit by the end of the school year ,” Haab said . She pointed out that according to legal counsel , a student can be on the homeless list “ for an extended time .” The state has a low threshold when a student is considered homeless because the fundamental goal is to ensure their health and safety .
Meeting with the education department
Haab said she and a small group met with Joni Ebert , the Deputy Commissioner of the NYS Department of Education . They were able to inform her of the important issues facing the Highland school district , such as assessments , common core standards and the district construction project .
“ We found her very easy to talk to and hopefully she ’ s gone back to the Commissioner [ Mary Ellen Elia ] with some of those concerns ,” Haab said .
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