MILFORD, DE -- As students returned to school this week, Milford School District parents are expressing frustrations over transportation issues.
District parent Jennifer Stevens says she requested a change of address for her 6th grader's bus route after recently moving. The past three days, she says she's had to trek across town to her son's old stop to wait for the bus for more than an hour.
"We know the bus normally comes a little late or a little early the first week of school anyways, even though the bus is wrong, he should be getting on at home," says Stevens. "But there's no communication."
Parent Tammy Lane says she requested transportation for her 11th grader more than a month before school started.
"I ended up emailing and then I had to physically go into the school," says Lane. "They said they would take care of it and nothing was done."
In a statement to WBOC, the Milford School District says:
"The Milford School District is currently implementing the State of Delaware's new Student Information System, Infinite Campus, as part of wave one. As with any new system, there are challenges that arise. Unfortunately, we have encountered difficulties with the data integration between the State of Delaware bus routing system, VEO, and Infinite Campus, which has impacted our transportation routing."
"Our top priority is to ensure that all students arrive at and depart from school safely and efficiently so they can receive the best educational experience possible."
Despite the district's efforts, parents say lessons still need to be learned here.
"Be more prepared and not wait till the last minute," says Lane. "They waited until the last minute to implement a new system 2.5 weeks before school started and I don't think it gave them enough time."
"They should have got it together before they threw these kids in or the single parents that work and don't have the extra help, or anybody for that matter," says Stevens.
Stevens says she has yet to learn of changes to her son's bus route. Lane says her son's information was finally updated last night.
The district is asking for families to verify their transportation information here. If a student’s information is not correct, parents can fill out a form on the transportation page.
The district asks that parents do not call the district office as officials are presently working through the issues. A student ID can be found in the Infinite Campus portal.
