To the Editors of Monsey Scoop:
At this point, enough is enough. For more than two years, over a hundred families, including my own, have been dragged through an infuriating, disrespectful, and utterly dysfunctional transportation process by the Clarkstown Central School District. What should be a basic public service has spiraled into a bureaucratic nightmare marked by silence, excuses, and a blatant refusal to deal honestly with the very taxpayers footing the bill.
Let’s be clear: the district’s current private-school busing model is not just inefficient, it’s absurd. One universal bus schedule for an entire school building, regardless of ages, grades, or dismissal times? If our children actually rode these buses, they’d be forced into marathon-length school days, showing up long before the building opens and returning home long after dismissal. No reasonable parent would subject their kids to that, and the district knows it.
So what’s the result? Parents are forced to scramble, driving their kids daily, arriving late to work, leaving early, or shelling out thousands per child for private transport. And while we struggle, the district sends us late bus passes without schedules, runs buses with one or two students onboard, and then dares to claim it “lacks resources.”
We asked the most basic, commonsense questions, over hundreds of emails:
- Why do buses run empty all year long?
- Why are public-school students given additional late buses while private-school families are told to “figure it out”?
- Why were schedules delayed, missing, or simply never sent?
- Why should parents suffer because the district refuses to make even minor adjustments that would cost virtually nothing?
Instead of transparency, we were met with stonewalling. Vague non-answers. Weeks with no reply. And in some cases, clear attempts to dodge responsibility altogether.
Even more infuriating: the district never once contacted private-school administrators to explore reasonable scheduling solutions. Not once. There is no record of meaningful outreach, no evidence of collaboration, and no sign that anyone in the district even attempted to understand our very real concerns. Instead, we were handed tone-deaf suggestions like enrolling our kids in before- and after-school programs, as if the problem is our schedules, not their broken system.
Requests for mediation? Dismissed.
Requests for honest communication? Ignored.
Requests for common-sense solutions? Brushed off like we don’t matter.
Meanwhile, Clarkstown’s public schools enjoy age-appropriate schedules, tailored routes, flexible transportation options, and extra buses for activities. Private-school families, many of them from the Jewish community, are told to accept a one-size-fits-all model that no public-school parent would tolerate for a single day. The double standard is glaring, and frankly, insulting.
This letter is not an act of politics, it’s an act of desperation. For years, we tried quietly, respectfully, tirelessly. We played by the rules. We communicated. We offered solutions. And we were treated as if our voices, our time, and our children simply did not matter.
The message we’ve received from the district—loudly and consistently, is unmistakable: they were never interested in listening.
Well, now we’re done being quiet. Our families deserve better. Our children deserve better. And our community deserves answers.
Signed,
Jack P.
A Fed-Up Parent Speaking for Hundreds of Families Who Can’t Get Answers
The views expressed in this letter do not necessarily represent those of Monsey Scoop. Have an opinion you’d like to share? Send it to us for review at monseyscoop@gmail.com.
It’s been very frustrating and yes they just brush it off like they aren’t doing anything wrong. It’s time to make a change and stop letting them get away with this.
In my opinion, it’s a kind of antisemitism!! They are doing it perhaps to prevent Jewish Orthodox families from moving into Nwe City/ Clarkstown district.
Where.are politicians ???
Actually, the buses for the district buildings in the public schools are also continuously late, more often in the afternoon than in the morning (although there are some small buses still arriving late- or simply not picking up students at all). We have had this problem for years. This is a major problem with the way transportation is run, how much bus drivers are paid, and not a prejudice against the private schools
Agreed I don’t believe it’s antisemitism , transportation has been a task to figure out the last 6 yrs at the least. But I’m sure longer. I recall my child getting off at a different stop on the way home bc otherwise they wouldn’t make it home til 430. We live 5 mins from middle school. This was almost ten years ago
Youngest was in elementary school, and their route changed around covid time, having them arrive at home 25mins later. Again live 5 mins from elementary school as well. Now in middle school we do drop off and pick up. Bc bus was full, leaving them with no place to sit. Or bus was picking up @855 arriving at school super late. And for pm drop off they were getting home closer to 5. Again we live 5 mins away.
Lastly we too made multiple calls and sent emails through the years and went unanswered/ignored.
So, I don’t fully believe is an issues with a single group but rather how they run their sched.
I really hope that Clarkstown figures this out rapidly. Each day that goes by is another day that a mother needs to leave work early or a father that needs to miss an important meeting. They simply don’t understand what it means to run a home with children. If they would, this would have been resolved a long time ago.
Attention Clarkstown School District:
A quick resolution needs to be imminent. It is in everyone’s best interest.
Thank you!
I am a nurse and would love to give back to the community in which I live, but Clarkstown with their lack of bussing simply makes that impossible. I am stuck carpooling in the morning as well as in the evening. One child has a random slot for bussing well after school ends and in between dismissal
WasI am a nurse and would love to give back to the community in which I live, but Clarkstown with their lack of bussing simply makes that impossible. I am stuck carpooling in the morning as well as in the evening. One child has a random slot for bussing well after school ends and in between dismissal times for 2 siblings. At this rate, and without a resolution, what are parents to do?
It is a absolute disgrace that the Clarkstown high schools and the middle school get multiple dismissals and our Jewish private schools dont get especially when other districts offer it.
The amount of money in school taxes that we are paying to get treated this way is a disgrace
Perhaps you should send a letter to the New York State Education Department. Be factual (not emotional) and demand an investigation.
We pay thousands of dollars in school taxes every year, don’t even use the public schools, and then are told if we want our son to go on the bus he will get picked up at 6:50 am when school starts at 9. And if he wants to go home on the bus he will have to wait until 5pm when school ends at 4. But don’t worry, Clarkstowns public school kids get transportation from their after school activities too! Sickening
I’m a parent who has been directly affected by the busing situation. Clarkstown was not willing to accommodate my child’s school—and they weren’t even willing to work with the school to find a solution. They provided only one pick-up and one drop-off time, and when the school reached out to request adjustments, the district refused.
As a result, I was forced to spend around $2,500 on private busing this year—on top of already extremely high taxes—despite the fact that my family is clearly entitled to transportation services by law. And I know I’m not alone. I’m speaking on behalf of many parents and families in our community who are struggling with the same burden and feel unheard and unsupported.
We deserve better. Our children deserve better.
We’ve been ignored for too long already.. We pay taxes, we are good neighbors.. we are respectful.. it’s time that respect is reciprocated.
Ignored?!?! Are you having a laugh?
Listen- as a Jewish taxpayer in Clarkstown who has sent children to both public and private schools, I will tell you that if you choose to send your child to private school, the district is only obligated to provide transportation to and from the school. They are not obligated to run multiple buses at multiple times- that is your responsibility. The reason you might see empty buses is probably due to children opting to drive themselves, or sick or having to get to school early or stay late, but they still have to operate the route. Your whining is tiresome and as long as the district stays within what the law demands, then you’ll have to figure out the logistics. I actually used to pay someone to drive my children when they needed budding outside the time the buses were available. If you can afford to send your children to private school, you can afford alternate transportation or make alternate plans with your employer if it doesn’t work. 🙄
It’s not a matter of affording private school. For jews it’s not a choice. Jewish children need Jewish education. It’s not a splurge it’s the only option.
That’s not true. There are plenty of Jewish students who attend public school.
Speak for yourself. You aren’t the Torah, nor G-d. I’m happy you find the Public School system ok for your religion(it might be Judaism). But in MY religion(might also be Judaism), which there are hundreds of thousands of participants in, we find Public School as a direct contradiction to all we hold dear. And as such we are entitled to our religious freedom, and OUR HARD EARNED TAX MONEY!! We pay almost 90% of ERCSD taxes! That’s a FACT! Yet we get Pennie’s back with attitude on the side. Same goes for Clarkstown and other areas.
Plan accordingly, you know the expenses involved. Be like the world at large and live within your means. Children are expensive, Rockland is expensive; have less children and/or live in a less expensive state or county.
Frum Jews in North Rockland had similar issues…got Agudah and politicians involved. Seemed to work.
We’ve been struggling with this since we moved to New City. The town has been completely unwilling to work with us, and in the end the only solution available was to pay a significant amount of money for private transportation on top of the exorbitant taxes we already pay.
It’s just so frustrating when you are a good citizen, pay all your taxes (as pricey as they are) and are not provided basic government services. What the School District is failing to realize, is that the basic function of a government serving the citizenry is being very neglected. I, and all our neighbors and friends, call on Clarkstown to understand that we are here to maintain the high standard of cleanliness, low crime, and wholesomeness that the district affords. It is our intention to raise our children in a safe and healthy environment and to contribute towards Clarkstown’s success. All that we ask for is that you understand what you have done..or better put not done. It cannot continue this way and our voices will only get louder. Let’s resolve this today and let’s all embark on great days together!
I’m so frustrated and upset with the district. Specifically, John Lenave. You have no idea what it means to go drop off and pick up your children EVERY SINGLE DAY. Shameful. We do everything right but get nothing in return. If you only had to do what we do this would be over in five minutes.
We are not Jewish but CCSD taxpayers and our child attends private school. The same rules apply to us. They aren’t singling you out. You either make the transportation work or you drive them yourself, just like we do. Everything is a choice, but everything is not antisemitism.
Spot on.
To Get Over It- the public school kids get multiple pickup times for their after school programs. Take that away and then we’ll be quiet.
To ST CA- it most definitely is anti semitism, and you’re feeling it too because of us. Welcome to our world. If you would have heard the nasty way the director of transportation spoke to me on the phone, you’d agree. Disgraceful.
Attention to some of the “the district is within the law” comments above:
1. Im not an attorney but based on what I am hearing, there is a divide between the what the district is providing to public vs private school students. That alone is wrong and shameful. Irrespective of the law.
2. East Ramapo and surrounding districts have figured out a way to accommodate all private school schedules. Clarkstown has not. Forget the law. Do what’s right. Do what’s right and everything else that follows will be great. It’s that simple John Lanave and company. We are NOT going away. Let’s resolve TODAY.
Here’s a thought. If you don’t like the school system then move into a different one that has a better bus schedule. Or better yet, go to public school. Your taxes pay for the school and if you don’t want to go there then move someplace closer to the school you want to go in. Don’t expect Clarkstown to pay for your choice.
Dear Bob,
Your letter above, while seemingly simple advice, does little to address the issue at hand. Telling someone to select a different school district where things may be more streamlined is not an answer. It is an easy way out. By law, Clarkstown is obligated to provide efficient bus transportation for all school children, both public and private. Asking a young 6 year old boy to get up in the wee hours of the morning and to be 2 hours early to class and having to stay late as well is not called bus service. For the same price, they can run one bus at 3am, stop at everyone’s home and check the box that they provided bus service. In that instance, we would all agree that it would be ridiculous. Children need to be picked up and dropped off at their respective school times, so that they can have successful and productive days. This is not complicated. Based on my understanding, the public school students are being provided very flexible transportation options which are not being afforded to private school students. So back to you initial statement of finding another school district….how about not? How about we just correct the problem just as many surrounding districts have done. Lets get it done and put all this behind us.
Its so amazing how they just disregard our children’s (and parent’s) schedules. The blatant disregard of our voices is more telling than anything else. Lets meet and figure this out. All the while, lets give the public school students a bus for every hour of the day. We are happy for them but don’t trot over us. I’m driving my kids every day….hey CSSD, care to help out?? Can I have my taxes refunded please?
SO FRUSTRATED AND WE WILL NOT LET THIS UP UNTIL RESOLVED.
ATTENTION CCSD:
PLEASE TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS PUBLIC SEPCTACLE AND FIX THE PROBLEM. A PROBLEM THAT IS IGNORED AND NOT CORRECTED WILL ONLY STICK AROUND AND GET WORSE AND WORSE. WE ARE NOT GOING AWAY – BELIEVE US. EVERY AVENUE WILL BE UTILIZED. PROFESSIONAL, LEGAL AND DEMOCRATIC. DO WE NEED TO GO THROUGH ALL OF THIS??? LETS JUST GET THIS DONE!! WE ARE HERE TO ENHANCE THE DISTRICT AND ONLY REQUEST THE SAME IN RETURN.
SO FRUSTRAED.
To whom it may concern ,
I am a mother that has to drive my children each day, morning and afternoon, to pick up my children. I cant do it anymore. I just can’t. Like many others, both spouses are trying to juggle this each day and cant do it anymore. I beg of you to please provide transportation for private school children with the same flexibility that is afforded to public school student. It cant go on like this. If you are a mother or father that has raised children, you certainly should understand the situation we are in. Please!!
I’m reading through all the comments here and just cant believe how bad all of you are being treated and taken advantage of. So unfair and challenging on your day to day. I have friends in neighboring districts and states, and although there are sometime logistical hiccups, by and large, the districts understand the need to have each child in school at their proper time. I know that in NJ, some legal action had to be taken until the district realized, or better yet told, they were in the wrong. Stay strong and keep it up! There are may backing you. More than you think.
I know 4 attorneys that have dealt with similar district litigation. They are more than happy to pursue legal if necessary.
Hi Everyone:
Back in the day there were some issue with ERCSD in terms of days off amongst others etc…those have been ironed out over time and it is my hope that this will be ironed out as well – although this a much larger issue at hand. If both sides are willing to meet and talk things over with a common goal….everything is possible. However, I’m hearing that CCSD has been snubbing private school parents for a long time. That alone illustrates to all where their hearts truly are. I hope they realize this and change…rooting for you.
According to the NYSED (which oversees the CCSD), transportation must be provided equally to public schools and independent/religious schools equally. The district has zero right to be selective in which institutions receive additional and flexible bus service. I recommend filing a formal complain with the NYSED documenting everything that has been going on over the past number of years and build a strong legal case against the district – the right attorney’s will handle this. Albany can get involved and will get involved, all the way up to our Governor, Kathy Hochul. The law, the manpower, the right people, the public, the media are now all acutely aware of what is going on and we will take this to the end. We are not stopping…lets go!
“ One universal bus schedule for an entire school building,”. Yup that’s the way it works for Public schools to, a given building as an arrival time and dismissal time. You are getting equal service. It’s a school bus not a taxi. Talk to the schools in question as to why multiple trips are required.
Thank you to the entire CCSD board including superintendent Marc Baiocco and John Lanave for understanding the frustrations many parents are dealing with at last nights board meeting. Your acknowledgment of our experience’s are well noted and we appreciate your desire to find common ground and seek out creative transportation solutions. It is our sincere hope that the sincerity of this dialogue continues in good faith. Once again, thank you for your attentiveness and understanding. Our intention is to contribute to Clarkstown’s success in a meaningful way and we hope that is reciprocated in the coming times.
Thank you!!
Dear Veritas,
I hope this message finds you well. I would like to take a moment and respond to your note above. No one is purporting here to suggest that we treat the CSSD as a taxi service. That has not ever been mentioned or insinuated so lets please have a respectful conversation in good faith. Please be careful on your choice of words; how you communicate matters.
It is well established that public schools students are provided an additional round of bussing called the “Late Bus Schedule”. You can reference this at the link here – https://south.ccsd.edu/students/late-bus-schedule – To be clear, we are thrilled for all public school students that they receive flexible and necessary transportation. We are happy for them and hope they continue to have successful and productive days and years in the CCSD. We only requesting that we are treated equitably and that our children simply have transportation that drops them off when their class begins and picks them up when their class is over. The ask is legitimate and is coming from a good place – we are good citizens and are just looking to make things work for our children’s education and their hard working parents. The challenge of juggling a family of children, two full time working parents with jobs on the line, and the need to drop off and pick up your children miles away each day is untenable. We respect the CCSD, the school board, John Lanave and Superintendent Dr. Marc P. Baiocco. They thoroughly understand our transportation issue and are working diligently to see if creative solutions can be undertaken that can benefit all. We are here to contribute to Clarkstown’s success and very much appreciate working with everyone together. We are all on the same team.
As a public and non public educator, public administrator and someone who attended catholic elementary, middle, high school, college and grad school and a parent who sent my children to public schools and private schools and colleges: my children have always had buss schedules that had one drop off and one pick up and literally 5:45 am in the morning way before school started because it included two private school pick up and drop offs. For kids who were above the 15 mile commute it only included a local pick up and drop off location to ensure sustainability of buss for ALL children within the community and to schools only legally approved by NYS and following state and federal laws. private school children are legally entitled to a safe and proper effective education as public schools and no Supt or board members should ever provide bussing to any schools that are not legally approved by NYS Education Commissioner and follow state and federal laws otherwise it’s discriminatory towards religious students . When my kids went to public schools they at times had long bus rides depending on their pick up and drop off times. I picked up my children from school when they stayed afterschool for sports, but there was a late bus that rarely met their transport scheduling needs.
Dear Religious Parent,
First of all, hats off to you. As an apparent longstanding educator and public administrator, I applaud you as you educate America’s next generation. I will try to address and unpack the various points that you made:
1. You mention that your children had an early bus as early as 5:45 am that included routes to other schools as well. That is certainly extremely early and I would venture to say it’s not fair for a young child. Nevertheless, I imagine that at the very least, your child was dropped off at school in time for class and picked up once class was over. The current private school children that are facing transportation challenges are not afforded this.
2. You mention that for children above the 15 mile NYS limit, there were transportation limitations in accordance with NYS law. No one is mentioning, recommending or insinuating to have that law adjusted in any way. The current private school children that are facing transportation challenges all reside within 15 miles of their school and are eligible for complete application of the law and should be afforded equitable solutions.
3.You mention that bussing should only be provided to schools that are approved by the NYS education commissioner and that are in compliance with all federal and state laws. The current private school children that are facing transportation challenges are enrolled in schools that are under full approval by the NYS education commissioner, in compliance with all federal and state education laws, are properly credentialed and are in full lockstep and oversight by the same government bodies that oversee the public school system.
4. You casually mention that your children did have a late bus after sports activities (which is fantastic). The current private school children that are facing transportation challenges are not afforded such an option and is one of the primary focuses of this conversation. The fact that your specific late bus route wasn’t as effective as you had hoped shouldn’t be a reason not to have it applied equally to private school students alike.
5. Lastly, from a financial perspective, private school students are a tremendous net gain for the CCSD as the entire financial burden of educating all those children shift from the CCSD to the parents and private schools. At the same time, all the school taxes that private school parents pay go into the CCSD (as good citizens we are happy to do so as expensive as it is) with no direct education cost provided in return. The cost of education one child in the CCSD, according to the NYS education department is $28,890.70 – https://data.nysed.gov/expenditures.php?year=2024&instid=800000039375 – so in reality, the private school students are saving the CCSD $7,222,675 in annual education costs. A staggering number. In addition to that, they are still contributing school taxes of roughly $14,000 (in addition to regular property tax). For 100 families, that is $1,400,000. That is a total of over $8,500,000 in cash and savings to the CCSD that private schools students do not benefit from. A staggering number.
All in all, we want Clarkstown to be successful, we want to be a part of it and are happy to do so. The CCSD has been very attentive to our requests and we sincerely hope that this is resolved soon. Many of the surrounding districts have acknowledged this reality and provide the only item we will ever request in return for all those savings…..equitable and robust transportation solutions for our children so parents can literally hold their jobs, manage multiple children’s busy schedules and be part of Clarkstown’s success! We respect the CCSD, the school board, John Lanave and Superintendent Dr. Marc P. Baiocco as they work with us to find creative solutions to this issue.
Thank you!!
Hello “A Citizen”,
I have lived in Clarkstown for many years and always loved it here. Although at first I did not understand what the whole bussing issue was all about, I now understand after having read through all the above. Very interesting…I think that private school students are a very important piece of the school system and they should be respected for their schedules…even if there are some challenges, lets figure out a way to overcome them and make sure their children are in school in time and home on time. My dad always told me, if there is a will there is a way. I cant imagine holding a full time job and having to do all that driving…i hope the district is working with you guys. Best of luck from a former Clarkstown soccer mom
Beth
Well said Beth I second that
Hello Everyone:
Another point that is going completely unmentioned here is the fact that the public schools system has a separate location and building for elementary school and middle school; each with their own transportation schedule. However, for efficiency purposes, many of the private schools combine their elementary school and middle school into one building and correctly dismissing them at their appropriate times. So in reality, the private school system is not having a staggered dismissal at all. They are in essence having different schools being dismissed at their appropriate times just like the public school students are. To say otherwise is not being accurate in the slightest.
Fair and equitable transportation for all!
Thank you CCSD for listening, understanding, and working with us. It is our hope that this comes to a soft landing very soon.
E.G.