Survey to be conducted of PCS rural parents concerning bussing needs

BY BECKY UEHLING

GRANT TRIBUNE Correspondent

A survey of rural parents whose children attend Perkins County Schools will be the next step to evaluate bussing needs in the district. The survey was created by and presented to the board for consideration by PCS parent Megan Apolius during its Monday, Oct. 20. She also requested the board consider adding additional bussing services to their existing setup.

There were several people on-hand during the meeting to hear the discussion on the  bussing setup at the school, which currently only includes three hub pick-up/drop-off locations in the county and no door-to-door options.

During the meeting, Apolius presented a hybrid hub drop-off option that would include an after-school door drop-off three days a week for families who desired it. Apolius also recommended the school consider using vans or SUVs to provide transportation instead of busses. This would help eliminate the need to find bus drivers with CDLs, which has been challenging for the district.

Apolius’ plan presented during the meeting included the following points:

Benefits for Families

• Options: Parents can choose house-to-house service when needed on provided days, or use hub locations for faster drop-offs.

• Accessibility: Better accommodates parents regardless of occupation.

• Fairness: Avoids the ‘one-size-fits-all’ model of full hub-only service.

When Hybrid Models 

Work Best

• Rural/Long Routes: House-to-house can be maintained for the most isolated homes where parents are unable to find reliable transportation from provided hub-drop offs, while hubs serve clustered neighborhoods and parents with flexible schedules.

• Driver Shortages: Hybrid routes can help balance workloads without cutting service entirely.

Recommendations for Implementation

1. Identify Pilot Routes: Test hybrid hubs on a few routes with long mileage or overlapping neighborhoods.

2. Engage Families: Provide clear explanations and get input from parents before rollout with the use of surveys.

3. Create Hub Standards: Ensure safety, accessibility, lighting, and space for parent pick-up.

4. Communicate Clearly: Provide schedules that specify when hubs will be used and when house-to-house service applies.

5. Evaluate Regularly: Track savings, efficiency, and family satisfaction to refine the system.

Benefits for the District

• Efficiency with Flexibility: Reduces route length and mileage while still serving families who cannot access a hub.

• Driver Retention: Creates shorter, more manageable routes, supporting driver satisfaction.

• Cost Control: Fuel and maintenance savings compared to full house-to-house service.

• Community Responsiveness: Shows families the district values both convenience and efficiency.

Challenges to Consider

• Scheduling: Coordinating which routes use hubs and which provide door service requires careful planning—use of a survey could help identify which areas need assistance.

• Bus driver shortages—advertisements, bonuses for driver retention and years of service, help pay for CDL, utilize vans/SUVs vs. buses for hybrid days to offset the need for CDL (could possibly be easier to recruit drivers if CDLs aren’t required—vans must hold less than 10 students to apply).

• Consistency: Families must clearly understand when hubs are in use.

“I’d like to see the hybrid routes run for a year and then go to full drop offs the following year to allow adjustments to the budget,” Apolius said.

Several of the board members asked questions of Apolius, and brought up additional thoughts and concerns, including the difficulty in finding bus drivers, the expense of purchasing vans and SUVs to be used for bussing, what the real desired need for door-to-door drop offs is, etc. The board was receptive to seeking more information, and indicated they would proceed with sending out the survey created by Apolius.

“The administration will continue to gather data and also send out the provided survey to parents,” said Superintendent Mark Joliffee. 

Joliffe also stated he will review rules and expectations from the state regarding transporting students via vans or SUV’s,  and create a budget of potential costs to the district and present those to the board.  “I would expect further conversation at the next board meeting,” he said.

Chairman Chris Fryzek said he is curious to see what the survey shows.

Apolius said she will attend the next board meeting to continue the discussion of bussing with the board, and encourages others to attend who have similar thoughts to share.

The next board meeting of the Perkins County Schools Board of Directors will be on Monday, Nov. 17 at 7 p.m. at the high school.