Diesel prices affecting school

**darkchocolate** · 05-19-2008, 04:26 PM

I have been wondering what is going to happen to our state budgets concerning buying diesel to transport students to school. We keep hearing about truck drivers, but it also affects our schools.

I read where 3 districts in Missouri ( I think it was) is going to a 4 day week this fall.

I work in the schools and I haven't heard anything yet about our district. Taxes will most likely have to go up or budgets be cut drastically. A school district one hour from me is having to make budget cuts because of lower student enrollment, gas cost and food cost increases. This dristict is making cuts that add up to 13 million dollars. That scares me.

I was just wondering if any of you have heard anything about how your local school is being affected.

**Domestic Gal** · 05-19-2008, 05:33 PM

Ours may go back to charging for bus service. They have in the past and quit doing it but they may return to it.
Will not effect me as we live close enough to all 3 schools that my kids walk.

**nessarowdy** · 05-19-2008, 06:01 PM

My SIL is a teacher at a school here in Montana that is going to a 4 day school week! CRAZY!

**Dixie** · 05-19-2008, 06:16 PM

I've been wondering the same thing, but so far, I haven't heard of any changes.
When gas prices went up after hurricane Katrina, schools across the state of GA shut down for a couple of days to save money.

**ShawnaRae** · 05-19-2008, 06:30 PM

Our school is at a 4 day week, and has been for over 10 years. The longest bus ride is a 60 mile round trip. There has been talk of the school closing all together. In that case, kids would be bussed to the nearest neighboring town, 45 - 75 miles away; 90 - 150 mile round trip. Things are bad! Our school budgets (Oregon) have been struggling for a long time, so I am very worried. If our school does shut down, I will homeschool all of our children. I cannot send them on a 150 mile trip 5 days a week. (The school they would be bussed to, if ours closes, is a 5 day a week school). I would love to see some budget increases for our schools. Our children's education should be a very high priority, but already, so many programs cut from our school. A few years ago they did away with the breakfast/lunch program, and I won't even go into academic issues! Gas prices will only make the situation worse. It's very sad that here, in the United States, schools are closing. (I just read about an OR school getting ready to close a few weeks ago).

**heartofmine** · 05-19-2008, 10:20 PM

I've been hearing maybe 4 days a week but adding a couple of hours each day to the school day to make up for it. My kids are in college so they have to buy their own gas and car. The college is in another town an hour away. We may have to look into an apartment for them if gas keeps going up.

**midwestgal** · 05-20-2008, 12:25 AM

Yes, very much here in Northern CA and all of CA. Billions were cut from the state budget. Teachers are being laid off in our city next year and others are having their hours cut like the computer teacher who went from almost full time to 2 hours a day!

**pita1213** · 05-20-2008, 05:52 PM

so far i haven't heard anything about adjusting the school day week or charging for transporting to and from school. other than the first couple of field trips at the beginning of the year, the kids have had to bring in $3-$5 per kid to pay for the gas in the buses. i found out today that they are going to raise the price of meal next year. breakfast goes from 80 cents to 90 cents. and lunch goes from 1.60-1.75 (depends on the age level of the school) to 1.90. adult lunches will go from 2.15 to 2.50.
the manager said it's because of the rising cost of the ingredients and the gas to transport it. the kids' lunch price is nuts if you ask me, but that adult lunch is a great deal for someone that eats out all the time. it's cheaper to make it yourself, but for a bought lunch, it's cheap considering the amount of food you get. thankfully the lunch ladies at school make really good lunches both for the kids and adults. i expect that there will be more families having to sign up for the free or reduced lunched. hopefully that isn't something that gets cut to help pay for gas.
i understand going to a 4 day school week and adding a couple hours to the school day. but if they do that here, i'm sure parks and rec will have to raise the price of the school age program to compensate for having to keep the kids all day long one day a week when now it's just a few hours in the morning and a few in the afternoon. and that will cause some more problems. ugh.

**kestrel91316** · 05-27-2008, 12:50 AM

Right about now we are finding out why they had all those tiny little schoolhouses out in the country..........

Perhaps a return to the "one-room schoolhouse", 21st century-style, would be a good idea.

**coup** · 05-27-2008, 12:48 PM

I spoke to someone in our local district lately and she said the school saves $10,000 per day when it is closed. The biggest factor is gasoline.

We had this conversation because there were so many snow days this year that the district needed to make up 2 days. They added minutes to each day rather than extend the school year by 2 days.

When I was in school I remember one year that the school was considering cancelling all bus routes. It never came to that.

If I could work a 4 day work week, then I'm all for a 4 day school week. But it's not likely to happen for me.

**Dancing Lotus** · 05-27-2008, 01:15 PM

Some of the schools in my area have changed the hours for next yr. Now the high schoolers will be in school until 4:30. Parents and students are not happy because this will affect after school jobs and activities.

**The Muse** · 05-27-2008, 01:52 PM

I don't know, but our property taxes are going up 8.9% due in part to the school budget. DH and I are already paying taxes through the nose and we don't even have kids nor do we plan to.

I think they should make people pay to take the bus to school. We live behind a middle school and the drop off line in the morning is insane. Seems that a lot of kids don't like to or don't for whatever reason take the bus. What a waste!

**Lady_V** · 05-27-2008, 02:07 PM

I think they should make people pay to take the bus to school.

What happens if a family can't afford to pay for the bus? I am not being snarky... I honestly don't know. Will funding be available for those families like reduced lunches?

I have never had to worry about buses when I was a child... and as a parent, I have driven DD to and from school because buses aren't available... when she was in public, we live within a mile, so no bus for her... and now she is in private, we have to drive her anyways...

I haven't heard anything about changing the number of days a week... but I did notice the summer calendar has the Sept return day. Here, the kids always go back to school the first Wednesday after the first Monday (confusing?

) but this year, they will be going back on a Thursday.

**The Muse** · 05-27-2008, 02:21 PM

What happens if a family can't afford to pay for the bus? I am not being snarky... I honestly don't know. Will funding be available for those families like reduced lunches?

Sure, why not?

It was just a suggestion based on the economic situation of my town. People here can well afford to pay for their children to take the bus and most of the buses are only 1/2 full.

**dancar3** · 05-27-2008, 02:23 PM

I have 2 part-time jobs and one of my jobs is a school bus driver. I can't imagine the schools having families pay (many wouldn't be able to afford it) to take the school bus because our job can be hard enough without trying to figure out whether it's ok to pick up Tommy....has his family paid or have they not? Besides, if they're standing at the bus stop, I'm picking them up, I'm not going to tell them they can't ride the bus.........no way!