A transportation update and discussion was provided. The district has 14,000 students eligible for bussing at a cost of $481 per student. There has been a long standing shortage of bus drivers and increased route efficiencies are needed. For the 2024-25 school year, many cost cutting measures were discussed including combining routes, changing elementary school start times and discontinuation of bussing for Pine Harbor Christian Academy, which is in the Hastings School District. Parents from the academy were notified of possible changes to transportation and several spoke to this during comments to the board, which are not part of the meeting recording. The board will be asked to approve a resolution in March. The district will poll parents to learn how they can better serve the student population in this regard.
- hmmockler