Funding shortfall leaves school kids without bus transportation

Letter to the Editor:

Since the beginning of the school year, parents of young children in Brisco and Spillimacheen have been fighting for a service that most of us would simply take for granted. They have been fighting to have a school bus return their children home at the end of the school day.

These kids take the school bus to Edgewater Elementary each morning, but funding shortfalls at the district level mean that there is no school bus from Edgewater Elementary in the afternoon.

Media outlets, both local and provincial, have covered this story extensively, interviewing parents and representatives from the district. People who have become aware of the story of how young mothers are required to pack up their preschool aged children every afternoon to drive the 60 km roundtrip to Edgewater to pick up their son or daughter are shocked. They can’t believe that our school system has come to this.

When I heard about this situation, I wrote two letters to the Minister of Education asking that more money be provided to school districts to ensure that we can transport all rural students safely to and from school. My first letter was dated September 18th. I have heard absolutely no response from the Minister to this letter, or to my subsequent letter on October 15th.

The amount of money given to school districts for transportation has not increased since 2002. At the same time, lack of funding to school districts has resulted in closures of numerous rural schools forcing more children to travel greater distances to get to school.

People in this area tell me that providing excellent educational opportunities for our children is a priority. They also tell me that ensuring safe transport for children from rural areas is a basic necessity.

Leaving these children with no way home is simply not acceptable. Bussing some rural children and not others is not acceptable. Causing families to worry that they may find that their bus route is the next to be cut is not acceptable.

It is time for the BC Liberal government to properly fund our public education system so that children in rural areas can safely travel to school and home again.

Norm Macdonald MLA

Columbia River - Revelstoke

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