N. Bellmore board: Busing mileage will not change

Current students at Gunther Elementary in North Bellmore will enroll at new schools in the fall because their school will close in June, and many parents felt that asking them to also figure out their own transportation was too much.

The North Bellmore Board of Education had initially proposed extending the busing mileage requirement to two miles, essentially eliminating busing; the move would have saved the district $400,000. But the board decided on Thursday not to extend the mileage, allowing Gunther parents to at least have their children bused to school next year.

“We have listened to the community, and we have heard concerns,” North Bellmore Superintendent Arnold Goldstein said. “There were concerns there were a lot of changes taking place at one time.”

The North Bellmore School District takes in part of North Merrick. To extend the busing mileage requirement, the board had previously planned to put the proposal up for public vote. At their monthly meeting on Feb. 16, the board voted unanimously to rescind that decision. Goldstein pointed out that although the proposal was taken off the table for the 2012-13 school year, it might be necessary to consider it in future years, as the effects of a state-mandated 2-percent property-tax levy cap begin to compound.

The board also announced that North Bellmore will withdraw from “Race to the Top,” President Obama’s signature education program that enticed states to enact school reforms by promising federal funding. Goldstein explained that the program’s cost outweighs its benefits. The cost for North Bellmore to participate is $35,000 annually for the required BOCES training and paperwork. Districts are also required to send staff members to meetings and trainings throughout the year.

After all was said and done, North Bellmore would have likely received only $17,000 over three years. “Getting that small amount of funds to participate in this is not benefiting our students,” Assistant Superintendent Dr. Marilyn Johnson said. “We found it distracting and expensive.”