• EEA: Student Transportation Services

    Policy

    All regulations governing student transportation are in accordance with the Ohio School Bus Operation Regulations issued by the Ohio Department of Education, Ohio State Highway Patrol, and the Ohio Department of Public Safety and as required by Ohio law.

    The transportation program is under the direction of the Chief Operating Officer.

    Transportation for Students Experiencing Homelessness

    Students experiencing homelessness and identified as such under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Act are provided transportation regardless of grade level. Transportation services may include yellow bus, RTA transportation, or private transportation services. If a student’s family secures permanent housing during the school year, the student is still eligible for transportation services for the remainder of the year. 

    Transportation for Students in Foster Care

    The District provides transportation to students in the legal custody of the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) regardless of grade level. Transportation services may include yellow bus, RTA transportation, or private transportation. If a student is from DCFS during the school year, the student can receive transportation for the remainder of the school year.

    Transportation for Students in Pre-K

    The District only provides transportation for Pre-K students with disabilities. Transportation for Pre-K students with disabilities is aligned with the Transportation for Students with Disabilities subsection below.

    Transportation for Students with Disabilities

    Students with disabilities will be assigned transportation services and accommodations (vests, oxygen, lifts, and other accommodations) as outlined in the Individualized Education Program (IEP) or Section 504 Accommodations Plan.

    The IEP or 504 Plan will be followed regarding transportation. The District assigns students to the closest school where the mandated programs are offered, including private facilities, when consistent with the law, applicable regulations, and the student’s IEP or 504 Plan.

    Students with disabilities who receive curb-to-curb transportation under an IEP or 504 Plan will be picked up and dropped off at their home address. However, parents or guardians can request special pick-up and drop-off arrangements from the Transportation Department with a one-week notice. Both pick-up and drop-off locations must be a reasonable distance from the student’s school as determined by the Transportation Department. Students with specific medical needs should submit the necessary medical documentation through the Office of Nursing and Health Services for other arrangements.

    Students with disabilities in grades seven and up will be provided RTA transportation unless the IEP or 504 plan specifies other accommodations.

    Bus attendants will be assigned to buses transporting students with disabilities when the  IEP or 504 plan requires such service. Additional attendants may be assigned to buses as determined appropriate by the District’s Transportation Department.

    Transportation for Students in Grades K-8

    Students in grades K through 6 who attend a school within one to three miles of residence are eligible for yellow bus transportation. The District offers transportation to a school outside of three miles from their residence at the discretion of the District’s Transportation Department.

    The District offers RTA transportation to 7th and 8th graders who reside one mile or greater from their home school. If the District provides lower grade siblings to a yellow bus, siblings in the 7th and 8th grades will ride based on space availability and proper behavior.

    Transportation for High School Students

    The District does not provide yellow bus transportation for general education high school students.

    The District provides RTA transportation to high school students residing greater than one mile from their school of choice.

    RTA Transportation

    Any student found by any judicial system to have committed two or more nonviolent crimes (including, but not limited to, theft, criminal damaging, disorderly conduct, or menacing) related to conduct occurring on an RTA vehicle, at an RTA facility, or an RTA stop may, at the discretion of the CEO or their designee, forfeit their privilege to receive RTA transportation for a period of up to one year

    Any student found by a judicial system to have committed any violent crime (including, but not limited to, assault, robbery, any sex crime, arson, possession of a dangerous ordinance, or possession of any weapon prohibited by Cleveland Codified Ordinance Section 627.11) related to conduct occurring on an RTA vehicle, at an RTA facility, or an RTA stop will forfeit their privilege to receive RTA transportation for one year.

    Any student found by a judicial system to have committed any violent or nonviolent crime related to conduct on an RTA vehicle or at an RTA facility or stop after a one-year forfeiture and reinstatement of RTA transportation privileges will permanently forfeit their privilege to receive RTA transportation.

    Students who forfeit their RTA transportation privilege under this policy will not be provided any other means of transportation by the District, except that the District will offer students who require transportation services under an IEP or 504 plan an alternative transportation service.

    Community and Non-Public Schools

    The District provides RTA transportation to students in grades 7-12 who attend community and non-public schools and reside further than one mile from their closest CMSD school.

    The District provides transportation to students in grades K-6 who attend community and non-public schools aligned with the abovementioned policies.

    Students with disabilities who are provided curb-to-curb service in their IEP or 504 plan and attend a community or non-public school are provided transportation through their school, not the District, unless there is an existing route or approval from the District’s Transportation Department.

    History

    • Adopted: October 4, 2001
    • Amended: August 16, 2020; June 28, 2016; August 11, 2020; March 29, 2022

    Legal References