Revising Hours Seen Student-transport Aid

Rescheduling the opening and closing times of the Ann Arbor elementary and secondary schools so that they do not cide might solve one of the problems created by the city's lack of school buses, the Ann Arbor Board of Education was told last night. "There are small children alone for 45 minutes every morning, eating breakfast alone, getting themselves off to school. And where is their mother? She's off in the second car the family had to buy, transporting the older kids to Scarlett Junior High in rush hour traffic," one parent said. Supt. W. Scott Westerman Jr. will report to the board next week on the feasibility of rearranging the school hours until bus service is restored. It may also be possible for the school buildings to open earlier, as some are doing already. Before the briefing session, Trustee Hazen Schumacher commented cheerfully that the Transportation Authority's plan: to restore bus service by March 1 might satisfy the complainants who demanded last week that the School Board solve the student busing problem. About 1,500 children have been left without transportation since the, city terminated its contract with the St. John Transportation Co. However, the 50 or more parents showed üp at last night's session and made it clear that they considered school busing the responsibility of the Board of Education, not the city. "Unjust, inequitable and unrealistic," is the way Paul A. Weinhold of 2362 Georgetown described the present busing situation in a petition signed by 778 residents, mostly of the northeast area. "It is completely unreasonable to expect parents to transport their children to and from a school that is located more than five miles from their homes. "We believe safe and punctual transportation is an obligation of the school board," the petition reads, and calis upon the trustees to "assume this I vesnonsihilitv." Weinhold s a i d after the meeting that he was s a t i s f i e d with the board's receptivity of the petition and expects it to be an agenda item for further discussion in the future. Others intheaudience, however, charged the trustees with antipathy and "lack of moral consciousness." One woman said with emotioQ, "the taxpayers are upset about the bus situation, they are unhappy that Huron High hasn't opened, but they are really sick that the board doesn't even listen. You teil us to 'shut up and go away', so we go home and vote down the bond issues in defiance. And it's only hurting oursëlves." As at last week's meeting, Board President Joseph R. Julin explained that there are no I funds available for intervening in the bus crisis. Westerman took pains to explain the rigidity of the state reimbursement regulations on which the schools' present bus operation i is based. Among the provisions is the rule that children receive free but transportation only if they liye outside of the city and more than IV-i miles from school. "We are reimbursed $30 per pupil if the child who is bused fits these guidelines," Westerman said. "If the bus picks up a child who is not, we not only lose that reimbursement but are fined an additional penalty fee per child." State law does not absolutely 1 prohibit the school board from operating transportation services for the ineligible children, George Balas, Ann Arbor Public Schools business manager pointed out. He and Transportation Director Paul Linebaugh have been assigned to complete a study of other possible busing arrangements for the school children by March 1. Trustee Ted Heusel launched a fist-slamming tirade against City Council for its inability to take action in restoring the buses due to the absence of three councilman from Tuesday's special meeting. A tion to allocate up to $120,000 to the Transportation Authority for the restoration of bus ser vice will be presented Monday, "but if the council members had all béen at the meeting, the buses might be running again this week," Heusel said. And he criticized the audience for not attending Monday's Council meeting en masse, "as I told you to," and demanding the city immediately allocate surplus funds to restore the buses. Most of those present seemed to agree with a high school student who pleaded with the board (and council) to "stop passing the buck and work together for a f ast solution." Julin, who spoke sympathetically about City C o u n c i 1' s predicament, was optimistic that "a solution and not merely a stop-gap measure is forthcoming. I see this as at last being taken out of the political arena," he said. And he invited members of the audience to "keep in mind there will be openings to be filled in the June 9 Board of Education elections. We would be delighted to have you as a member, facing these problems with us."