Schools offer free breakfasts and lunch to kids who qualify based on their income level. Many of Mobile county students are close to the poverty level. If they didn’t eat at school, they may not eat a balanced meal all day. I would rather teach children who are nourished than those who are starving!

REPLACE THE SCHOOL BOARD with people who know what a spreadsheet is!

We used to have to walk to school in the snow, up hill, both ways......

These buses are a vital part of many students’ education, including that of myself. I have used the bus for five years, through Clark and now Davidson, both about 1.5 hours each way when allowing for the transfer at Phillips. If it were not for the bus, I know that I would not be able to attend Davidson and participate in their unique engineering program. Each school offers specialized ACADEMIC programs, and Bryant’s revered aqua-science program simply did not meet my future career goals as Davidson’s EPIC program did. It is also not feasible to offer these programs at every school. Centralizing major academic magnets allows for greater access and efficiency, as well as draw. But that doesn’t matter now, because the MCPSS does not care about the schools or the students. Or at least thats the message their actions send.

Chip68 I understand i live on Howells Ferry and the bus stops at every drive what happened to a neutral bus stop and its not a half mile from Allentown?  Why can’t they walk or the moms standing out by the rode with them walk them or take them? The buses run to close to the schools!!!

KxVx-That is correct. Even comes with free breakfast now. We got parents out there that are to d-m lazy to fix their kids breakfast. I couldnt even imagine my folks allowing me to leave for school without making sure we ate our breakfast.

Working4u, this is because everybody knows public school is just FREE DAYCARE.

I remember attending the old Semmes School. The only air system in the school were heater radiators. There was no such of a thing as A/C. You were lucky if the teacher had a fan in that room. Some times it was so hot we would have classes outside under shade trees. The water fountains were made of ceramic. You would have to wait a while until the warm water would pass before you could drink. No A/C in the lunch room. You ate and went straight outside. The coolest time was the bus ride home. We never had less than 10 kids at our stop. You were dropped off at your street. It made no difference if your house was a mile down that street, you walked rain or shine. Some days you got a seat on the bus and some days you stood up all the way to school. And if you acted up, the bus driver at her/his discretion would not allow you on the bus. No notes, no warnings. If you acted up on the way to school that bus driver could have your little butt worn out when you arrived at school.

I would like to know why so many stops are needed in a bus route? One morning on my way to work, I followed a bus from Hubert Pierce Road to Snow Road the bus driver stopped at almost every drive way to pick up kids going to either Allen Town, Semmes Elementary or Semmes Middle Schools. When I was a kid if you lived to close to a school you did not get the oppurtunity to ride a bus. But if where you lived qualified for bus service then there was a bus stop you had to either walk to or have parents drop you off at and wait with a group of other kids.To me it doesn’t make since, why have so many stops?

I bet those nuns kept you wild Bishop Toolen girls in line with those rulers.

:-p