By Patricia Jones, Alliance Community Task Force: Creating Opportunity
One of the biggest problems working parents have is getting their kids to school. How do families work this out without changing employers, taking dock time from their jobs, or relying on friends or relatives to handle transportation issues? There are a few things in place for Alliance Public Schools: City of Alliance Public Transit, the cross-town school bus, school permits, and student transportation payments for rural students. Hemingford Schools bus students.
The City of Alliance runs Public Transit, which provides rides to anyone in the community, including school children, Monday through Friday, 6:30-4:30. Two drivers pick up students who have called for a ride from their homes in the morning, and take them home after school. Pick-ups start at 7:00 am and students are dropped off at Grandview, Middle School, and High School by 7:30 am. Emerson students then ride the cross-town school bus that runs between Emerson and Grandview.
Alliance Public Transit has subscription rides set for the students who use transportation services for school. Parents fill out a form stating they know the policies and allow their child to ride. The cost? $1 per day that they ride ($0.50 a ride). Since Alliance Public Transit is covered under federal Title 6, they cannot discriminate nor require payments if a household is unable to pay. In the letter given to parents, it does say that if they need financial assistance, they just need to contact either the Public Transit Director or dispatcher.
Alliance Public Transit is at capacity for early morning transportation that gets students to school by 7:30 for breakfast. They will still pick up other students before school, and those students will be at their buildings before classes begin at 8:00.
Most schools, including Hemingford, provide school bus transportation for rural students. There is no fee for students who use the bus to get to school. Students from the Alliance area who have decided to attend Hemingford schools are picked up in Berea. Hemingford does not run late buses for students involved in extracurricular activities.
Alliance Public Schools made the decision decades ago that providing bussing for rural students was not feasible because students were spread out over such a large region. Instead, they pay mileage to rural families. To qualify, a family must live more than three miles from the Alliance city limits. They can claim mileage from that point three miles from city limits to their home. For example, if they live ten miles from Alliance, they can be paid for seven miles. The reimbursement rate is $1.9095 per mile; this recognizes the round-trip cost. The school will pay reimbursement for one vehicle per day regardless of the number of children or the number of trips the family must make.
Parents must request the Student Transportation form from the School Administration Building. After submitting the form, the district will verify distance and student attendance and compensate the family. Forms must be requested every year.
Rural students may obtain a School Permit, and high school students involved in extracurricular activities are encouraged to get this special license. There are rules according to the Nebraska Department of Motor Vehicles. For small towns like Hemingford, there is no requirement regarding distance; in larger towns like Alliance, a student must live at least 1.5 miles from school.
The minimum age is 14 years and 2 months for a School Permit. Prior to getting the permit, a student must have a School Learner's Permit (available after their 14th birthday) or Learner's Permit. They must complete a DMV-approved driver safety course, or submit a 50-hour certification form that documents time driving, practiced with an adult driver.
Students with a School Permit may drive unsupervised to and from school over the most direct route from their home, and may transport other family members to their schools. They may also drive to school-related and extracurricular activities. They do not have the legal right to drive anywhere else unless accompanied by a licensed driver who is at least 21 years old.
School attendance is so important for ensuring a better future for our young people. Our schools and communities are working hard to make it easier for families to get their children to their classes every day.