The Crawfordsville School Board approved the purchase of three new, gas-powered school buses Thursday during the district’s latest public meeting.
The buses are set to replace three aging buses for the transportation department. The move also falls in line with Bus Monitor Appreciation Day, when the district celebrated its monitors and drivers, Superintendent Dr. Bowling said.
“We wanted to make sure those folks realized how much we do appreciate them. Those are the first faces our kids see on a school day, and to be greeted by somebody that cares about them is very important,” he said. “We appreciate our bus [monitors and] drivers.”
Associate Superintendent Dr. Rex Ryker recommended the purchase of the gas-powered buses, saying he and others were hoping to go electric.
However, due to the high cost of an all-electric bus and its charging station, the move for electric is simply not feasible at this time.
“For the last three years, we have looked at electric buses. In some ways it’s kind of like how flat-screen TVs were in the beginning — they just were not cost effective,” Ryker said. “One brand new electric bus is a little over $400,000, and the charging station is $80,000. We still, at this time, can purchase three (gas-powered) school buses for the price of one electric bus.”
Ryker and others are set to meet with the League of Women Voters next week to discuss ways the group can support a future purchase of an all-electric bus. Separately, grants and other state-funding options will also be researched.
“I have had some community members reach out and advocate for that purchase, or at least look into it,” Board President Steve McLaughlin said. “And a little bit of the cost comparisons you just illustrated, it’s ... we have to do what we have to do.”
“It’ll get there,” Bowling added.
The cost of the three buses totals $441,246.
In other business, the board:
• Ratified an earlier decision to lift the district’s masking policy.
• Approved the purchase of heating and cooling units, to be installed at Hose Elementary, for a total of $173,637.
• Approved the purchase of HVAC controls and their subsequent professional installation at $65,279.
• Approved two new hires, five resignations and one termination of corporation personnel, including: Katherine Lueking, hired as nurse at Willson; Jessica McClamroch, hired as CTE coordinator; Leah Sizemore, resigned as special education aide at Hose; Tosha Hirt, resigned as life skills aide at Hose; Demi Haas, resigned as teachers aide at CMS; Sheridan Pool, resigned as Title I aide at Nicholson; Tiffany Sinnet, resigned as science teacher at CHS; and Sarah Ewoldt, terminated as secretary at CHS.
