Despite earlier promises the Manchester School district may now be refusing to bus charter school kids based on the argument that it will cost $82,000.00 in transportation costs to do so. From what I’ve been told so far, the original plan was to have them ride on the existing Catholic school bus routes, which would drop off Charter school kids at Charter schools along or not far off these existing routes. The district had allocated $82k for this, but the district has cut that plan and diverted the money a part of a plan to restore positions in the Manchester public Schools.
Objections abound. Why would it cost $82,000.00 more if the district is using existing routes?
RSA 189:6 and 189:9 compel the district to provide the same transportation privileges to students of approved private schools or assigned to charter schools.
At the end of the day, cuts made to public school jobs were reinstated at the expense of school choice and charter school students, and there are already rumors circulating that the district knows it has to provide transportation but is willing to make the necessary moves despite that; they re willing to reinstate the public school positions and wait for someone to challenge them.
If that is true, then the the school district knows it can’t divert that money but has decided to play politics with Manchester taxpayers wallets. They are creating a situation where in order to satisfy state laws they have violated intentionally they will have to add “new spending” to the budget to accommodate charter school students. This power play would allow the district to blame school choice for increases to the budget.
I am told that there is a school board meeting in Manchester tonight. Interested parties should attend.
H/T to Kate Baker, Gary Krupp, and others