As the debate over whether school districts should outsource student transportation services or keep the operations in-house continues, school districts must be aware of the conditions under which outsourcing should be considered in the first place. Superintendents must identify the triggers that motivate them to make the good business decisions by taking a hard look at solutions offered by the private sector.
In some cases, the indicators are so subtle that school districts in those situations are ambivalent about the prospect, but they still keep the private sector in their peripheral vision. In other cases, it is painfully obvious.
Attracting the interest of private carriers that are in business to make money is not a slam-dunk. Districts with small fleets have a difficult time attracting quality carriers so they get creative. Some carriers won’t go near small districts outside of providing required transportation for special needs students. Th ey do suggest that small districts consolidate their transportation operations to make it financially worthwhile for private carriers to provide services.
ONE DISTRICT’S DECISION
On March 1, Struthers City Schools near Youngstown, Ohio issued an RFP for a private or public transportation organization to manage its operation, a move that eventually will end a 10-year odyssey, during which time the district superintendent has doubled as transportation director.
Current Superintendent Joseph Nohra assumed the role three years ago. He admits he is not well suited to fill that position in addition to running the district. “I don’t believe I do an effective job as a transportation director of this district,” he said. “I want a transportation director that will focus on students and drivers.”
A decade ago, the fi scal well-being of Struthers was in critical condition. To prevent the district from going on life support, Nohra said a new school board took a fiscal scalpel to the budget and began making cuts so deep that no department was spared.
He said that by the time the administrative cuts were done, the transportation director’s position was among the casualties. That’s when Nohra’s predecessors as superintendent, current district treasurer Art “AJ” Ginnetti and Kathy Evans, now Nohra’s secretary, took over student transportation.
Their learning curve was steep, and ever since, they’ve been helping Nohra run the department with limited facilities and almost no technological support. They use MapQuest to plan the district’s eight bus routes for the 1,200 students transported to and from school every day. Nohra said the demands of the transportation department distract him from other district duties. Ginnetti is currently also the transportation supervisor and Evan is the router.
Nohra called 2005 a “wrecking-ball” situation. “We’ve been 10 years without anyone focusing on transportation besides the superintendent and the treasurer, and it’s been tough,” Nohra said. “It’s hard to focus on academics. We have not had any horrible situations because we have dedicated drivers. It’s just become too tough. I wake up in themiddle of the night worrying about things.”
At superintendent conferences, Nohra said he always attends sessions on transportation. He recalls on one occasion being the only person who raised his hand when the instructor asked if anyone had more than six routes and no transportation director.
Things are not so cut and dried in the Augusta Unified School District, located about 20 miles east of Wichita, Kansas. Augusta Transportation Supervisor Robert Sutton said a committee decided to look into outsourcing its student transportation last year, but put the move on hold. “The savings didn’t make it worth it,” Sutton said. Sutton added that Augusta’s small size did not make it financially attractive to private carriers, one of which suggested the district consolidate services with a neighboring district. “We’re so small they (bus companies) did not see any money to be made,” Sutton said. “If we combined districts, we’d have our own fleet, but we don’t have any diagnostic equipment. We would share maintenance and drivers on activity trips.”
THE TRIGGERS
Meanwhile, just a half-hour from Augusta down US-400 is Wichita Public Schools, which is at the other end of the contracting spectrum. Division Director of Operations Darren Muci said Wichita has been outsourcing student transportation for as long as anyone currently at the district can recall. “No one can really remember seeing a bus with Wichita Unified School District 259 on it,” Muci added.
Wichita is in the fifth year of a seven-year contract with First Student. Muci said the district tested the marketplace and ended a 14-year relationship with its previous carrier in 2010. He noted district officials felt it was their responsibility to solicit the marketplace to see who might be interested in their transportation model.
“It is rare to have a contract for any service last that long,” Muci said. “So it was our responsibility to see what was available for us. First Student made a very credible proposal that was highly favorable.”
One of the triggers to change carriers was First Student offering to provide Wichita with a complete fleet of brand new buses to transport the district’s 17,000 ride-eligible students. The seven-year term on the contract is a result of the district not wanting any buses older than that. The age of the equipment and cost of maintenance are additional triggers that cause many districts to consider outsourcing.
Other considerations include management of the company, administrative support and technology.
Muci said First Student also caters to the district’s “very healthy” magnet school program that transports students to any magnet school they choose as long as they live at least 2.5 miles away.
Muci advised that school districts considering outsourcing should do their homework to determine exactly which companies are out there and to check their track records. They should also reach outto other school districts to learn from their experiences. “When schools look to outsource, it’s either for services or it’s a funding issue,” Muci said. “Then comes the age of the equipment.”
Struthers’ Nohra said equipment maintenance is a key consideration in the district’s RFP. Winters in northeast Ohio are hard on vehicles, and the district’s modest fleet of 11 buses is kept in an uncovered parking lot near the football stadium. The RFP specifies a parking garage. “Eventually I want those buses housed under a roof,” Nohra said. “The lives of our buses would be extended by about two years just by keeping them out of the elements.”
Nohra added that technology is important, but so is having someone on staff who can operate the technology. Struthers has also explored consolidating services with neighboring districts that includes sharing facilities and a transportation supervisor. “I believe shared services is one of those ways to make the dollars go further,” Nohra said. “When you look at how you can do more with less, shared services and sharing a transportation supervisor is one of those ways.”
Other major elements of the RFP include working with the administration to supervise the drivers, operations, fleet maintenance and safety training.
David Ramsay, director of transportation for Howard County Public Schools in Ellicott, Maryland, said his district has for many years outsourced transportation, and he remains committed to outsourcing even though there are pros and cons to both systems. “At the end of the day, we are looking for great service, competitive pricing, excellent bus drivers and attendants,” Ramsay said. “Our kids are in their care and we want to make sure they are safe.”
Ramsay’s district contracts with multiple carriers to transport their 41,000 ride-eligible students in 448 buses owned by the carriers. He said contracts are bid every year to keep services at high levels. “We deliver very good services but I’m always seeking to improve,” he said. “We are always looking to get better.”
He added that taking transportation inhouse would be very expensive because of equipment and land acquisitions, construction of facilities and buying buses. “If the bids became prohibitive, I would make that recommendation,” he said.
A VENDOR’S VIEW
Combined, First Student and the businesses it has acquired over the years have provided student transportation services for more than a century. Company President Dennis Maple said school districts are looking for three “vital capabilities” that include highly trained drivers skilled in the safe transport of students, transportation solutions that include fleet management and maintenance, and strong customer orientation and culture that encourage new ways of thinking about service efficiency.
Maple added that First Student executives have seen outsourcing relationships evolve to more of a partnership than that of a supplier mentality.
“School districts are under tremendous pressure to balance competitive and economic pressures with the need to deliver quality education,” Maple said. “This marketplace reality requires partners who have the experience, resources and desire to participate in and support the longer term mission of the district and the broader community.”
Maple also said school districts are looking for integrity, responsive value, managerial flexibility and community guardianship in private carriers.
“Students start and end their days on the school bus,” Maple said. “Transportation solution partners who recognize the opportunity to impact each student’s day in a positive manner align directly with the mission of the district and the broader community.”
Nohra is anxiously awaiting the responses to his RFP and said Struthers will accept bids from any public or private entity capable of providing transportation services, including other school districts. “I don’t care if it’s from the public or private sector,” he said. “We just want help.”
