Some students encountered bus delays on the first day of school Aug. 26 as De Soto School District bus drivers got used to their routes and parents adjusted to new grade-level centers.
“We did experience bus delays, affecting a handful of our elementary routes for day 1,” Superintendent Ron Farrow said. “Most were related to the time needed at the beginning of a school year for drivers to learn routes, get to know students’ faces and carefully verify bus assignments. A loading process that normally takes a few minutes can take considerably longer during those first days. Those checks are important for student safety and help drivers build relationships with their students. We also identified dismissal bottlenecks, particularly at the Primary School (formerly Athena Elementary).”
With the start of the school year, Athena Elementary became De Soto Primary and Vineland Elementary became De Soto Intermediate School. However, Farrow said he didn’t believe that was the cause of delays.
“While the building changes bring some new transportation routines, the first day’s extended delays are not representative of our planned daily route times,” Farrow said. “Much of the additional time involved those beginning-of-year loading and verification procedures.
Our transportation and building teams have reviewed the first day, identified adjustments to loading and dismissal, and are working together to improve the process. We expect more consistent timing as students and drivers become familiar with one another and those adjustments take effect. We will continue monitoring actual route times and making improvements throughout the year.”
He said the district had significant improvements to transportation by Monday.
“All buses (were) off the lots today by 4 p.m.,” Farrow said. “Most left on time with our latest bus only 15 minutes behind. We anticipate continued improvements throughout the week.”
He said they understand that any bus delays affect families’ schedules and can cause concerns.
Farrow said the district’s communications director worked with the transportation department on the second day of school to provide timely updates to affected families.
“Parents waiting on a delayed bus should watch for district and school messages, and contact transportation or their child’s school if they need additional information,” he said. “Having the student’s name and bus number available will help staff assist them.”
Some parents have suggested using a tracking app that other area schools use.
“Regarding a bus-tracking app, we actually began using KIDaccount last year, which adds another layer of safety in our dismissal process,” Farrow said. “While we have not started using technology to track students on and off the bus, we will continue to explore these layers of safety and security for our students and continue to make improvements when appropriate.
“I’m grateful for our staff’s teamwork and our families’ patience as everyone settles into the school year. We have areas to improve, and that work is underway, alongside the many positive things happening in our classrooms.”
He said overall, the first day of school was positive.
“Staff welcomed students into their classrooms, helped them settle into new routines and worked together throughout the day,” he said. “There is a great deal of excitement about the opportunities our grade-level centers provide for students and teachers.”