School bus route changed: Move sends more students to Bobby Ray
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“We’re just overloaded,” said West Elementary principal Troy Jones, “and we need a little help. We don’t have any extra classrooms. Hopefully this will help.”
Director of Schools Dr. Jerry Hale said the change was being made with the goal of reducing the student-to-teacher ratio at West and to bring about a student population balance between the two schools. West’s student population is now pushing 600 while Bobby Ray’s is under 400.
“West is just about full while Bobby Ray has plenty of room,” said Hale, who noted the latter school has an entire building sitting empty. “We want to get our ratios down a little at West and Dearl Cole (the school system’s transportation director) suggested changing one bus route would help to balance things up.”
Cole said the zone in question is not one of the larger bus routes. It is bounded on the east by New Smithville Highway and stretches from Towles Ave. on the south end to Grizzle Road on the north end. The route is bounded on the west first by North Spring St., then by Upper Faulkner Springs Rd. and finally by Bluff Springs Rd.
The route encompasses, among other places, the residential areas around Warren County Middle School, the Skyline area, the eastern end of Pike Hill Rd. and the Rolling Hills subdivision. Cole said the rezoning will affect between 45 and 50 children.
The rezoning will take effect when the upcoming kindergarten class begins school this fall. Officials said current West students now living in the affected area will be grandfathered in, or allowed to remain at the school if they so desire. However, their parents will have to provide their own transportation as the buses on that route will be serving Bobby Ray exclusively.