Students are transported to and from their home address unless another address is requested by April 1, 2023. If your child will be going to a babysitter or childcare provider for the 2023-24 school year, please complete the Babysitter/Childcare Information Form by the deadline. Please review the details below.
The following message was emailed to M-W families on February 9, 2023, and again on March 16, 2023:
Dear Parent or Guardian:
Bus routing for the 2023-2024 school year will soon begin. All children are transported to and from their home addresses at the beginning of each school year. If your child will be going to a babysitter or childcare provider for the 2023-24 school year, please complete the Babysitter/Childcare Information Form.
This form should be submitted to the transportation office no later than April 1, 2023. It is also necessary to fill out this form if your child attends an afterschool program such as YMCA, Club Kid, Extended Day, SMA, UMAC, etc.
We are pleased to offer this babysitter bus service with two restrictions:
Babysitter arrangements can be scheduled for the morning, afternoon, or both. However, the afternoon bus stop must be to the same address five days a week.
The babysitter location must be within your child’s school attendance zone. If you have any questions about elementary school boundaries, please call our office at 845-460-6010.
If you submit a request after April 1, 2023, you may be required to make alternate arrangements for your child’s babysitter/childcare transportation for the first couple of weeks of school, or until the bus route change can be implemented.
If you share joint custody of your child, please note that the school district is only required to provide busing to a single residence, according to state law. I have included excerpts below from the New York State Education Department School Law Book for your reference.
School Law Book 38th Edition on Child Care Providers and Transportation:
57:17. Must a parent request child care transportation by a special date?
Yes. A child’s parents must request child care transportation in writing no later than April 1 preceding the next school year, except where the family moves into the district later than April 1. In that case, the request must be made within 30 days of establishing residency in the district (§ 3635(1)(e)).
School Law Book 38th Edition on Joint Custody and Transportation
57:12. Must a school district transport children of divorced parents to different locations on different days of the week?
No. According to the commissioner of education, a student can only have a single residence for school purposes even when that student’s parents are divorced (see 49:10). There is no statutory or regulatory requirement that a district transport a student whose parents share joint custody to one parent’s home on some days of the week and to the other parent’s home on different days of the week (Appeal of Dickinson, 39 Ed Dept Rep 41 (1999); Appeal of Van Der Jagt, 33 Ed Dept Rep 517 (1994)).
Enjoy the rest of the school year. We look forward to transporting your child in September.
Sincerely,
Dawn Russell
Director of Transportation