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Second in a series
As students return to class this month, school officials across the state and nation will monitor the price of oil and hope their budgets can stand the rising cost of fuel.
The recent spike in gas prices has dramatically increased the cost of transporting kids to schools. It has forced some administrators to streamline bus routes and ponder extending walking distances to reduce fuel expenses.
Some districts will use global positioning systems in buses to navigate more efficient routes. Others will pack more kids into school buses. Nearly all will instructed bus drivers to limit idling time to save fuel.
The Jefferson County School District, the state’s largest, set aside an extra million dollars last year to compensate for an expected rise in gas prices in the 2008-09 school year.
“We are waiting for the first quarter projections to see if we were accurate enough with our budget,” said Jefferson County School District spokesperson Melissa Reeves. “If not, we have to ask for more money to cover the increase cost of fuel. It depends on what the first quarter brings.
“We are using GPS systems (in buses) to conserve gas,” she added. “The drivers are learning to cut back on idling time and there is also talk about using an electric bus, but that is in the future.”
Jefferson County School District buses travel about 24,000 miles every day (equal to the circumference of the Earth) according to Reeves.
Jefferson County, along with other state district, pays no taxes on gas. Still diesel fuel prices range more than $4 a gallon for state school districts. That adds up in Jefferson County, which uses 355 buses each day. Most school buses only get 7 miles per gallon. Jefferson County spends $85,000 to fill up its massive fleet.
“It’s really becoming impossible to manage the situation, said Bob Smith, the district’s chief operating officer. “The rising cost of fuel is presenting an incredible challenge.”
Fuel costs have led to an increase if food expenses at schools across the state.
“All our food items have gone up in cost, but we will not increase the price we charge students this year,” said Linda Stoll, executive director of food and nutrition services for the Jefferson County district. “We feel our parents are already being hit at the grocery store when they shop.”
While Jefferson County appears able to handle the rise in fuel costs, not every district is as lucky. According to a recent story from MSNBC, fuel expenses could wreak havoc across the nation. A survey by the American Association of School Administrators determined that 99 percent of local superintendents said rising costs and shrinking budgets would hurt their schools this year.
Colorado school officials don’t appear to be in a panic mode.
“Based on what we estimated (last year) for inflation and gas prices, we think we will be OK,” said Tustin Amole, spokesperson for the Cherry Creek School District. “But with the Russians in Georgia, there are a lot of things we can’t predict.”
One of the biggest unknowns is how the votes will fall for the district’s $12 million bond election in November.
“At the moment, we don’t anticipate any changes in the budget,” Amole said. “But if we lose the election, we are looking at $12 million in cuts for the following year.”
As with most other school districts, bus drivers in Cherry Creek have learned to cut back on idling. Bus tires are watched and kept properly inflated to help fuel efficiency. Classrooms are kept at 68 degrees during school hours and shut down at night and on weekends to cut energy costs.
Amole said the district has contingency funds set aside should energy prices continue rise.
The Boulder County School District may also beef up its budget to cover the cost of fuel. The district’s transportation director, Bob Young, has asked for an additional $400,000 this year to pay for fuel expenses.
“I make the request,” Young said. “The board decides where the money comes from.”
Young does not expect to face a crisis this year. He said the board planned for an increase in fuel costs.
“We had enough money in the budget last year to cover the increase for this upcoming school year,” he said.
Young said the district might look to acquire newer buses in the future or add more natural gas fueled buses to its fleet. At present, the Boulder district has eight buses that run on compressed natural gas. The alternative fuel cost about $2.39 a gallon. Diesel runs about $4.37 in Boulder, Young said.
“I am not biting my nails, over this,” Young said. “I have routes that have to run. Whatever the price, we will run the routes.”
Students in Boulder County can expect to pay a bit more for food this school year, said Sue Anderson, the district’s director of nutrition services.
School lunches will go up by 25 cents in Boulder this school year, she said. Students will also see higher prices on specialty items such as pizza, cream cheese, and vitamin water.
Anderson isn’t sure how students will react.
“School has not started yet, but I am sure I will hear something once it starts,” she said. “But people are aware of the cost of things at the grocery store. When prices go up, it has to be passed to the consumer.”
Rising gas prices might impact the number of people the Douglas County School District can employ, said Paul Balon, the district’s transportation director.
“There may be certain things, such as the number of full-time employees or equipment that might be affected,” he said, referring to budget balancing moves to offset the cost of fuel.
Still, Balon said a favorable contract allows his district to acquire fuel at a fairly low rate. At present, Douglas County pays $4.12 a gallon for diesel fuel.
The district has some new buses in the fleet, some that get up to 9 miles a gallon. In addition, Balon said buses would pack in more students this year to cut costs.
“We will increase capacity and put 65 people on each bus,” he said.
More drastic moves may be needed if prices stay high.
“If things keep going up, we may have to cut back on field trips or increase the distances students walk to school,” he said. “Right now, the price of oil is falling, so I am keeping my fingers crossed.”
Mountain school districts will face some of the highest fuel hikes in years.
The Steamboat Springs School District has seen fuel prices double in the past five years.
Tax revenue increases have helped the district weather the added expenses, said Ed Dingledine, the district’s transportation director.
“For this school year we don’t anticipate any changes,” he said. “We have discussed cutting back on idle time for the buses and we will try to combine trips if we can. We have tried to double up on team trips, which must makes common sense.”
Budget increases have also hit home in Ouray, one of the state’s smallest school districts. The district, home to 270 students, has increased its fuel budget by about 25 percent, said Superintendent Sandy Kern.
“The extra money came from various places,” she said. “ We cut back on repairs and maintenance.”
The district only has one main bus route, but increased fuel prices could limit the number of extracurricular activities students can attend.
“We may have to cut back on activities,” Kern said. “We send kids all over the place for a lot of extracurricular activities.”
Whatever happens, Ouray will take it in stride.
“We are a tourist town, so everyone is affected by higher prices, whether that results in paying more to go places or in a decrease in tourism.”
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