By Joanne Degnan, Managing Editor
ALLENTOWN — The parents of middle school band students who applied for subscription busing for 2012-2013 will not be granted reduced rates to reflect the days they must drive their children to school for before-school band rehearsals.
The Board of Education decided Sept. 5 that the district instead would return the $150 subscription busing deposit to any band parent who requests it. This one-time accommodation would be made because band parents did not know about the new band rehearsal schedule when they submitted their bus applications last spring.
Schools Superintendent Richard Fitzpatrick had asked the board to allow band parents to pay a pro-rated subscription busing fee because of the number of early-morning rehearsals scheduled before the regular school day begins. Parents of sixth-graders will have to drive their children to 69 morning band practices and parents of seventh- and eighth graders will have drive children to 79 practices, he said.
”The parents feel they are paying $300 for transportation, but there are a significant number of days when they cannot take advantage of what they are paying for,” Dr. Fitzpatrick said.
”I would recommend we consider this request from parents,” Dr. Fitzpatrick told the school board. “It is a legitimate request especially since they had no knowledge of this when they paid for (subscription busing).”
School board members, however, were concerned that establishing a pro-rated fee for a select group of parents would set a troublesome precedent.
Children on school athletic teams who stay after school for sports practices throughout the year would want reduced rates because their bus seats are empty in the afternoons, Board of Education President Lisa Herzer said.
”Logistically, this would be very hard to keep track of,” agreed school board member Gregg Barkley.
If the district pro-rated fees based on the number of band rehearsals or sports practices in a given calendar year how would it know if the child had actually gone to those practices or rode the bus? Mr. Barkley asked. Next, parents could start asking for refunds every time their child was absent from school and didn’t utilize the subscription bus service, he said.
Board member Howard Krieger said what sets the situation with the middle school band parents apart is that they signed on for subscription busing before the new early morning rehearsals were announced. Some parents wouldn’t have bought a seat on the bus if they had known they had to drive their kids to school so often.
The board agreed and said the fairest course of action was to offer a one-time refund of the busing deposit to any middle school band parent.
Middle school students who live more than two miles from school qualify for free busing under state regulations, but Upper Freehold and Allentown families who live under the two-mile radius pay $300 per child for subscription bus service.
The district discourages students living under the two-mile busing cutoff from walking or riding bikes to Stone Bridge Middle School because there are no sidewalks on Route 524 in Upper Freehold. The district requires families who allow their children to walk to Stone Bridge to submit signed permission slips.

