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Show 'y y 1 y A-10 Tfte Park Record Saturday, September 23, 2000 Alternate transportation: Ecker Hill seventh-grader Evan Nelson is dropped off at school, and rides his scooter to the front doors because he is ineligible for bus service. "We have to pay -- we shouldn't have to pay. It's stupid," he said. I JE WF-ER VCKENNA. PARK RECORD f ..aak" y : Growth in music, special education Continued from A-9 tics at the high school. She reported report-ed a smooth transition for most students stu-dents hick-to-school and a new elass to the high school. "Lie t v. production." which creates the "Miner Morning Show." in addition to presidential campaign updates. Stamslaw said the school was alive with Homecoming anticipation this week. wlh dress-up days and assemblies. They are also very happy with their new bleachers. All committees in the Parent Teacher Student Organization have been filled, and the site-base group has met and is currently drafting its goals for the year. Art teacher Linda Barnes has her work on exhibit at the I'rmersity of L'tah Museum of Art. Guidance counselors from the high school, Jerry Fiat. Joan Mills. Laurie White. and Laura Waugaman. presented the board with the purpose of the Comprehensive Guidance program which helps students with academic plans, the Student Educational Occupation Plans, and personal issues such as grief, harassment, body image, and substance abuse. The comprehensive guidance pro gram will undergo a review by the state in March. When asked what they would like to have, the counselors coun-selors all agreed that "more individual individ-ual time with students" would be it. They are on the edge of needing another full-time counselor. Merry Haugen reported that the music program has grown 20-percent over the last three years, mostly most-ly due to the addition of the Strings Program, and choral programs at the high school. H augen said one fourth of the total student body in the district is in a music program. Tom Van Gorder. district director of personnel and student services, reported an increase in federal funding for the special education program. The district has budgeted million for the special ed. pro-eram pro-eram this vear, an increase of KiXH) from last year. A "huge influx" of eighth-grade special education edu-cation students into the high school has caused an increase in the budget. budg-et. Over 105 students in the special education program spend over half their day in the special education classes. There is a total of 422 special spe-cial ed. students. Business administrator Von Hoi tin leported a- .7-percent growth rale in the district and "good, low class sizes." The elementary ele-mentary school are "fairly stable" and the high school enrollment was W) under projection. Hortin said it didn't grow "as much as anticipated." anticipat-ed." Requests Considering the crowing number of committees in the district (ranging (rang-ing from building utilization to ) Board of Education president Colleen Bailey asked Anderson to remind teachers of their valuable, and needed representation. She wants teachers to be aware of "ways for staff to provide input to committees." regarding issues such as building utilization. Appreciation Board member Carol Murphy was presented with flowers by fellow fel-low member Kathryn Adair for her work in legislature updates and support to the board with her law background, and extensive work during the summer. "Legislature is the grass roots of what makes us tick." The next school board meeting is on Tuesdav, Oct. 3. at 6 p.m. at Ecker Hill Middle School. jHoneyJl Park City Jewish Center j 1 2000 5761 I Higli Holiday Services with Rabbi Joseph (jcldniuj I Sdort Id lodf at 20 VU!f Brev Rosh HaShana 7:30pm on Friday, September 29th Rosh HaShana Day 10:30am on Saturday, September 30th 10:30am - Children's Services (K-7) 11:30am - Tots' Service (Birth-PreSchool) 1 1 2:30 pm - Oneg Luncheon ! 2:30pm - Tashlich Kol Nidre 7:30pm on Sunday, October 8th Yom Kippur Day 10:30am on Monday, October 9t 10:30am - Children's Services (Kj 1 1 :30am - Tots' Service (Birth-PreSct 2:30pm - Ask-the-Rabbi Sessiori 4:45om - Yiskor and Ne'ilah Servf i . 5:30pm - Concluding Services (children 6:15pm - Break-the-Fast Seating is limited so please notify the office that you are attending services Ticket costs for non-members who wish to join us for the High Holidays: Adults $100 - Children (3-13) $25 Full-time StudentsMilitary Personnel $75 Reciprocity letters accepted for members-in-good-standing. For information on attendance, call the Temple office at 435-649-2276 c7 r 3 j Budget requires boundari Continued from A-9 ondary students to live at least two miles away from school in order to gain eligibility. In addition, said Hortin, some states have higher property taxes and greater funding for education educa-tion than l'tah, which generates more money for their school districts. dis-tricts. In Park City, some students previously eligible for bussing are no longer eligible due to the construction of new roads and subdivisions that have decreased their distance to school. According to the l'tah State Code, funding for school transportation trans-portation is "determined on the basis of the moM efficient and economic routes" (53a-17a-127). Measurementsr are calculated by the Department of Transportation to determine the boundaries. complained that their children are outside the boundaries, but crossing 1-80 t,o get. to Jeremy Ranch Elementary School is impossible - there are no sidewalks side-walks or crossing guards. Hortin said the school board has recognized these dangerous areas, but has seen little help from the county and the city to make safer routes for children to get to school. "Every time a new subdivision is built, the planning commission asks for our input. Even though we're trying to tell them e need sidewalks, side-walks, we're not seeing them, he said. Safety of areas are city or county responsibility. Our responsibility is to bus kids over 1.5 or 2 miles. It is parents' responsibility to get kids to aad Utah Slate Laws Regarding school Transportation Safety first Some districts dis-tricts in the state are transporting trans-porting ineligible ineligi-ble students to school free, but at a very high cost. Fifty-one percent per-cent of the ineligible student stu-dent bussing in the state is in the Jordan School District. This is not a decision deci-sion the Jordan school board made based on "extra money" the district dis-trict had. or a desire to provide bussing to all students, but out of safetv. Major roads such as Redwood and 2(0 South are extremely dangerous for students stu-dents to cross. An independent contractor in Jordan has acted as a third party to designate which ineligible students should be bussed to school due to extremely hazardous routes to school. All of the money to bus these students comes out of the Jordan School District monies. Safety is also a concern for some students in the Park City School District who live in A student eligible for state-dupported transportation means: a student enrolled in kindergarten througft grade six who lives at least 1.5 miles from school f a student enrolled In grades seven through 12 who lives at least two miles from school f a student enrolled In a apodal program offered by a school district and approved by the State Board of Education for trainable, motor, multiple-disabled, or other students, with severe disabilities who are incapable of walking to sclwol or where It Is unsafe for students to walk because of their handicapping condition,, without reference to distance from school. (Utah Code Section 53A-1 7a-1 27) from school safely. If they don't like the way the roads are (they should) talk to city or county representatives." The county has recognized these areas as unsafe and is compensating the parents who have paid the $200 fee with a $60 refund. "The county is trying try-ing to take care of their share, trying to be proactive," said Hortin. Options for "safer travel" for walking students do not seem that safe. Crossing guards would not necessarily help because the distance to cross underneath 1-80 is loo long for a guard to watch to Parley's Park poses a similar problem. Research has shown that the length of the green walking walk-ing light does not allow young children enough time to cross the State Road 224 safely. Who defines "hazardous"? Part of the problem is in defining defin-ing "hazardous walking areas." DeFord was passed on the knowledge knowl-edge from a previous board of education that "a broad-based committee several years ago grappled with the issue of defining defin-ing w hich areas were "hazardous" and which were not. They were not able to come to a consensus, and state definitions do not help. To some, our weather makes all of our areas hazardous." To others, oth-ers, onlv steep areas would be hazardous.' haz-ardous.' Given the divisions observed in the last attempt to this, we have had to accept that we do not have the ab.lity to fairly and t ,ui-t ,ui-t a b I y among It's a give and take Een if the school district did provide more ineligible students with free bussing, there would be other problems, besides a drainage of money from the budget that supports teacher salaries and instruction. "Even if we had the money, we may not be able to get enough bus drivers," said Hortin. because it is already difficult to get enough drivers for this district. There are options to eliminate the sour feelings on the sides of parents arJ school board members. mem-bers. With the removal of the paid-bussing option, parents would return to the old alternatives that every other district, and the majority of districts in the coun- UniHcnK from nn" pnri In tht1 rincDrooR ana jercmy Ranvn0,her Crossing from Sun Peak try have used: carpooline. walk- . . . entrance to auver springs K-gei ing, or ruling pikcs. Road 224. Several parents have v ONLY ONCE fS ... In a lifetime does an opportunity like this one come along .. . The dream of living in an exclusive resort mountain community . . . the dream of owning a lakeside home .. . the reality of being able to afford it. Deer Mountain's first public offering features unsurpassed lots from the $80,000's and unique townhomes from $ 1 80,000's with views like nothing you've ever seen . . . ONLY ONCE 5yi .1400 www.dccrmtn.com fsjan foxier, ' fnade r .- Re Jf.i4 - ' i L 1 ... Poor Co |