Parents with children enrolled in three Springfield Public Schools magnet programs were recently notified they will not be eligible for busing during the early weeks of the school year, which starts Aug. 22.

The district will not initially provide busing for the 180 children who signed up to attend the AgAcademy, the Academy of Exploration and the WOLF programs.

John Mulford, deputy superintendent of operations, said no other busing cuts or delays are expected going into the 2022-23 school year.

He said busing will be provided to eligible students attending traditional schools and the other magnet programs.

"As we neared the start of the school year, we had to make a tough decision," he said.

As of Friday, 7,253 eligible students had signed up for busing this year. To run all of the expected routes, 128 bus drivers are needed.

Mulford said the district currently employs 115 bus drivers — more than at any point in the past year — and there are others in the hiring and training pipeline.

More:Springfield parents ask board to reconsider school start time changes, busing eligibility

The district is able to operate using fewer bus drivers overall because there are three separate start times instead of two, allowing for more trips.

The new start times for this year include:

The K-8 schools are split between the early and late start times. Start times for magnet programs vary.

The programs are located outside of traditional school buildings in partnership with local businesses and nonprofits.

The three magnet programs without busing at the start of the school year are assigned to start at 7:20 a.m., when demand for busing is the highest.

Mulford said the district explored different ways to offer busing to the three programs, including pushing back the start time, but found the options too disruptive.

Other magnet programs — the Health Sciences Academy and the Academy of Fine and Performing Arts — have later start times.

Families apply to the magnet programs in the spring. At the time, they were told that the busing was tentatively available, based on staffing.

"Our hope is definitely to provide it," he said. "We want to provide it."

Stephen Hall, chief communications officer, said the district has been calling the parents of children enrolled in the three programs.

"We are having conversations with families about what options they have," he said.

He said some parents may opt to forego sending their children to the magnet program, especially if they are eligible for busing to their neighborhood school.

In spring 2021, the school board changed the busing eligibility to give more children a ride, especially at the high school level, and offered busing for the first time to magnet programs.

Lack of transportation has long been a barrier for certain families who want to be able to access the magnet programs.

However, a competitive market and labor shortages left the district with too few drivers during the 2021-22 year and unable to fully implement the changes.

The board altered busing eligibility going into the upcoming school year — maintaining some, but not all, of the expansion attempted last year.

Mulford said the district hopes to offer busing to the three magnet programs by the end of the first quarter but there are no guarantees.

He said solutions are being explored to provide child care for families who can drop off their kids early or pick them up late. 

The district is also talking to a charter bus company about options to provide busing, by contract, as a short-term solution for children who need a ride.

Mulford said the district plans to communicate any options to the families in the following week or so.

"Our hope is that we will be able to get them transportation," he said.

The Springfield school board approved the following busing eligibility guidelines for the 2022-23 year:

Tier I schools: 7:20 a.m. to 2:20 p.m.

Tier II schools: 8:10 a.m. to 3:10 p.m. 

Tier III schools: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Middle schools: Carver, Cherokee, Jarrett, Pipkin, Reed

Claudette Riley is the education reporter for the News-Leader. Email news tips to criley@news-leader.com.