Elementary and middle school students living more than two miles from their designated school attendance center and high school students living more than three miles from their designated attendance center are entitled transportation to and from their attendance center at the expense of the school district.
Distance to designated attendance center or to a bus route shall be measured on the public highway or street only and over the most passable and safest route as determined by the administration, from the roadway opposite the entrance to the school grounds to the roadway opposite the entrance to the student’s residence, except that dead-ends and/or housing developments shall be measured from the point of the public highway or street opposite the entrance to such dead-ends or developments.
Transportation of students who require special education services will generally be provided as for other students, when appropriate. Specialized transportation of a student to and from a special education instructional service is a function of that service and, therefore, an appropriate expenditure of special education instructional funds generated through the weighting plan or IDEA federal funds designated for special education purposes.
Transportation of a student to and from a special education support service is a function of that service, and will be specified in the individualized education program (IEP) or the individualized family service plan (IFSP). When the IEP team determines that unique transportation arrangements are required and the arrangements are specified in the IEP or IFSP, the school district will provide one or more of the following transportation arrangements for instructional services and the AEA for support services:
- Transportation from the student's residence to the location of the special education and back to the student's residence, or child care placement for students below the age of six.
- Special assistance or adaptations in getting the student to and from and on and off the vehicle, en route to and from the special education.
- Reimbursement of the actual costs of transportation when, by mutual agreement, the parents provide transportation for the student to and from the special education.
The school district is not required to provide reimbursement to parents who elect to provide transportation in lieu of agency-provided transportation.
A student may be required, at the board's discretion, to meet a school vehicle without reimbursement up to three-fourths of a mile. The board may require the parent to transport their children up to two miles to connect with school bus vehicles at the expense of the school district when conditions deem it advisable. It is within the discretion of the board to determine such conditions.
Parents of students who live where transportation by bus is impracticable or unavailable may be required to furnish transportation to and from the designated attendance center at the expense of the school district. Parents who transport their children at the expense of the school district will be reimbursed at the rate per mile set by the state.
Transportation arrangements made by agreement with a neighboring school district will follow the terms of the agreement. Generally, parents of students who choose to attend a school in a school district other than their resident school district will provide transportation to and from the school at their own expense.
The administration may assign pupils transported to school by bus to any elementary school or schools in order to equalize enrollment and to avoid overcrowded conditions. This applies both to resident and to non-resident students.
Approved: January 18, 1999
Revised/Reviewed: November 25, 2019