Accessible childcare critical to Cape bus plan

For years, Cape Henlopen school board has been working on bus schedules that would allow buses to make two runs.

The issue is now critical, because state officials refuse to pay for more buses for Cape's new Love Creek Elementary School unless Cape uses buses more efficiently. Still, over and over, the question has been which students should start first.

It's not an easy decision, as research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows high school students need sleep, resulting in a recommendation that high school start no earlier than 8:30 a.m.

But that is at odds with long-established school schedules.

The board first decided high school would start first; then that decision was reversed so high school students could sleep in; and now, with a new board, the original decision has been reinstated. The high school and middle schools will start at 7:40 a.m., and all the elementary schools will likely start at 8:55 a.m.

Making a clear decision is a step forward, and it's important the board decided now for next year, giving parents time to make plans. Those plans can be complicated when families have children in different schools.

Still we have to wonder why the board spent nearly $10,000 to have a consultant develop a plan that the board spent little time discussing and then basically ignored in making its decision.

It's also not clear whether the proposed start times will result in shorter bus routes. The consultants' plan showed an average ride time of 49 minutes for high school students, with some students spending 65 minutes on the bus each way.

That's a lot of time for any student of any age to be sitting on a bus.

Before implementing new start times next year, it's imperative that district officials roll out plans for early morning childcare – especially for Milton parents and district teachers and staff – who will now likely leave for work before their youngest children are picked up by the bus.

Safe, accessible childcare for the district's youngest children must be a critical component of any plan for getting Cape students to school.