Board of Education approves school residency requirement 

UPDATED: AUGUST 18, 2010
The Port Jervis School District Board of Education voted Aug. 17 to require all newly-enrolled elementary school-aged students to attend the school where their parents/legal guardians reside. The resolution ends the district's practice of transporting elementary students across school residence lines to where their childcare provider is located or their parent works.

To ensure that all Port Jervis School District residents are treated equally, teachers and other district employees are not exempt from the policy.

The requirement will not affect students who currently attend a school outside of their designed area. They will all be permitted to continue their education at their current school as long as the family uses the same childcare provider, the childcare provider does not relocate outside of the current school zone, or, if applicable, the child's parent does not stop teaching or working at the current school.

The decision to change the policy was made primarily to reduce transportation costs. "The Board of Education and administration have been diligent and responsive to the current economic climate. We're looking at all expenditures to find areas where we can reduce spending without compromising student programs," said Assistant Superintendent Lorelei Case. "This was one of the tough decisions that had to be made." 

Case explained that the financial impact of transporting students to an elementary school outside of the area where they reside is substantial. Currently, the district has approximately 45 who are transported across residence lines. She said, "These students must be assigned a seat on two buses. They are assigned a seat on what would be their designated bus and a seat on their requested bus."   

"If we continue this practice, the district will have to add additional run at a cost of $225 per day or $40,000 a year," noted Case.    
 

By law, New York school districts are not required to transport students to a childcare facility located outside of their designated attendance zone. Port Jervis is one of the only Orange County districts that has been providing this service as a courtesy. Over the years, the number of families requesting this service has grown significantly.

Anyone who has a question or needs more information about the school residency requirement should call Superintendent John Xanthis or Assistant Superintendent Lorelei Case at 858-3180.