LAWRENCE - Lawrence High School students will be charged $1 a day to ride the school bus.
Starting in October, the School Department will charge each student up to $180 per year to take the bus to and from school. The new fee will affect all of the 1,800 high-school students eligible to ride the school bus.
School Superintendent Wilfredo Laboy proposed the fee to offset the rising costs of transporting students to the new school in the south part of town. He thought the rate of $1 per day - the same amount students pay to get to and from school on public transportation - would be fair.
"A dollar is reasonable," said Laboy. "They pay that now."
The School Committee last night unanimously approved the fee, with board member James Vittorioso absent from the meeting.
Busing has been a concern since the site, near Interstate 495, for a new high school was chosen. It is two miles from the former, more centralized downtown location. Putting the school on the outskirts of the city means most students need to travel farther to get there, especially those living downtown or in the north part of town, who used to be within easy walking distance of school.
The school budget includes $770,000 to bus students to the high school. The money already in the budget is expected to cover the cost of the buses even without the fees from students. But Laboy hopes to collect $80,000 from the fees to help offset the expense.
"It's a very small contribution," he said.
Money will be collected on a monthly basis by each of the six high schools housed in the new building. Those who pay will be given a new pass in a different color every month.
No fees will be charged to ride the bus in September. Instead, students who are eligible for the bus will receive a letter in the mail telling them where to catch the bus and at what time. The letter will serve as the student's bus pass for the first month of school.
The letters, written in Spanish and English, are being put in the mail today, according to school officials.
Families with more than one student riding the bus to the high school will not be offered any discounts, Laboy said.
"We recognize parents may have hardships," he said. "But educating kids is a costly business."
Starting in October, the School Department will charge each student up to $180 per year to take the bus to and from school. The new fee will affect all of the 1,800 high-school students eligible to ride the school bus.
School Superintendent Wilfredo Laboy proposed the fee to offset the rising costs of transporting students to the new school in the south part of town. He thought the rate of $1 per day - the same amount students pay to get to and from school on public transportation - would be fair.
"A dollar is reasonable," said Laboy. "They pay that now."
The School Committee last night unanimously approved the fee, with board member James Vittorioso absent from the meeting.
Busing has been a concern since the site, near Interstate 495, for a new high school was chosen. It is two miles from the former, more centralized downtown location. Putting the school on the outskirts of the city means most students need to travel farther to get there, especially those living downtown or in the north part of town, who used to be within easy walking distance of school.
The school budget includes $770,000 to bus students to the high school. The money already in the budget is expected to cover the cost of the buses even without the fees from students. But Laboy hopes to collect $80,000 from the fees to help offset the expense.
"It's a very small contribution," he said.
Money will be collected on a monthly basis by each of the six high schools housed in the new building. Those who pay will be given a new pass in a different color every month.
No fees will be charged to ride the bus in September. Instead, students who are eligible for the bus will receive a letter in the mail telling them where to catch the bus and at what time. The letter will serve as the student's bus pass for the first month of school.
The letters, written in Spanish and English, are being put in the mail today, according to school officials.
Families with more than one student riding the bus to the high school will not be offered any discounts, Laboy said.
"We recognize parents may have hardships," he said. "But educating kids is a costly business."
Laboy said that many other communities also are charging students to ride on their buses. North Andover and Andover each charge students in grades seven to 12 $300 per year to ride. Andover caps the fee at $600 per family per year.
