MONROE, Conn. — All-Star Transportation’s bus driver shortage continues to pose problems for school sports teams trying to get to road games. Jockey Hollow Middle School Principal Julia Strong included extra money in her budget request to cover costs for all teams and pay for outside companies when rides are hard to come by.
“We are seeking to restore busing for all athletic contests, to provide equitable access to all student-athletes,” she told the Board of Education at a budget workshop on Jan. 5. “Last year, during a tough time, we ended up needing to cut transportation to some of our teams. I think our basketball, baseball and softball families have been carrying an unfair burden.”
Strong asked for a $15,754 increase in her athletic transportation line item, but Masuk High School Principal Steve Swensen, whose school experiences similar issues, suggested making her request 20 percent higher, because outside companies charge significantly more than All-Star does.
When rides are short, Masuk uses Dattco, then B and B Transportation and Carriage Limousine Service, according to Swensen.
Vice Chair Christine Cascella said, “you need a realistic number, so you can actually provide the transportation, because for six years we haven’t had transportation at the middle school.”
“So we’re not getting the buses we’re paying for?” Alan Vaglivelo, a fellow board member, asked, referring to All-Star.
“We’re paying them for the services they’re delivering, but they are not able to deliver these services,” Superintendent Joseph Kobza replied. “They’re not getting paid for these services.”
Jerry Stevens, a board member, said adding 20 percent to Strong’s request brings it to $18,904.
Strong’s budget presentation was part of a workshop to review the superintendent’s $78.55 million spending plan for fiscal year 2026-27, which is a 5.16 percent increase from the current year.
On Jan. 5, the board also heard presentations from principals of Monroe, Stepney and Fawn Hollow elementary and Masuk High schools. Workshops covering special education, curriculum and professional development were held on Jan. 8, and on IT, facilities and capital projects last Monday.
More time for math
A new 0.2 full time equivalent teacher at Jockey Hollow ($16,600) will allow for an increase in instructional time for math for sixth graders. Kobza said districts that have outperformed Monroe in math have more instructional time for the subject.
He said the change would allow sixth graders to alternate an English Language Arts (ELA) skills and strategies class with a math skills and strategies class every other day.
Strong said, “this is coming out of the full court press we’ve been doing for math achievement for our students, specifically our sixth graders as they make that transition from elementary academics to secondary academics — and we’ve worked very hard with curriculum. We’ve looked at instruction. We’ve looked at assessment.”
She said an analysis of instructional time found sixth graders had double the time in language arts than they did for math.
Strong said the hours for the 0.2 FTE would be used to extend an existing teacher.
In her presentation to the school board, Strong showed an operational budget request of $117,000, excluding salaries and benefits and other contractual obligations. She said the major drivers were instructional equipment and supplies, hands-on materials, consumable supplies, and specialized equipment for Unified Arts classes.
This part of Jockey Hollow’s budget represents an overall decrease of $2,642 from the current one.
All respectful comments with the commenter’s first and last name are welcome.
