After complaints about school buses arriving late or never coming at all, many bus stops will be moved or consolidated and parents are being requested to opt-out of bus routes if students intend to walk or be driven to school. (WI File Photo/Robert R. Roberts)
After complaints about school buses arriving late or never coming at all, many bus stops will be moved or consolidated and parents are being requested to opt-out of bus routes if students intend to walk or be driven to school. (WI File Photo/Robert R. Roberts)

PGCPS Plans to Adjust School Start, Bus Arrival Times

Major changes are being implemented in Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) as the school year gears up. 

Previously, there were 13 different bell times across the county’s school system and students reported buses arriving late or never coming at all. 

To address these problems, there will now be three standardized school start times: 7:30 a.m., 8:30 a.m., and 9:30 a.m.  

Further, many bus stops will be moved or consolidated and parents are being requested to opt out of bus routes if students intend to walk or be driven to school. School officials also recommend that parents download the StopFinder app to better track the whereabouts of the bus.

Board member Shayla Adams-Stafford, who advocated for a PGCPS transportation audit last year, is asking parents to be patient with implementing these changes.

“The opt-out allows us to appropriately assign students to a bus stop and give us more accurate numbers versus plan numbers,” said PGCPS Transportation Director Keba Baldwin. “Knowing the parents that don’t want transportation will help us to improve the accuracy of our bus routing.”

Some parents are raising concerns about the new school registration system, ParentVue, and difficulties with ensuring proper enrollment. Parents Erin Thompson and Julia Saladino both reported their children as not enrolled despite submitting the requisite information months in advance.

PGCPS Director of Communications Meghan Thornton said the issues are “not widespread” and are affecting three or four students per school, largely through a system process to prevent duplicate records.

“Duplicate records can occur if families inadvertently attempt to register the same student twice; the student information system will stop the process to ensure data quality and accuracy,” Thornton said. “When this happens, PGCPS staff merge the duplicate records and release the process to continue.”

The Washington Informer previously covered the adjustment to school start times; read more here.

Distinguished National Scholars Give Thoughts on Improving Opportunity for Youth

During the National Society of High School Scholars’ (NSHSS) Day in National Harbor, several students gave their opinions of what community leaders can do to improve paths to opportunity for youth. 

Kenyon Munoz from Ashburn, Virginia, who wants to study environmental conservation, and Aaron George from Austin, Texas both believe that a focus on equity and financial and medical assistance will open more doors of opportunity for the rising generation of scholars.

“Our leaders should focus more on equity and giving equal opportunities, which leads to equality,” said Munoz. “We also need financial assistance.  Many scholarships have fees.  My high school waived scholarship fees.”

Rohan Carlos Hartigan of San Francisco wants to go to Stanford University to study in the institution’s new Department of African Studies, said he would particularly like to learn more about Liberia. He is thankful for NSHSS’ scholarships and diverse peer group.

“The key is giving students access to the most important problems and showing paths to address them,” Rohan told The Informer. “Take the lessons and apply them to your life.”

Richard is a contributing writer with the Washington Informer, focusing on Prince George’s county’s political and business updates alongside sports. He graduated from the University of Maryland, Baltimore...

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