Dakota Times

The Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan School District announced how transportation funding from the 2019 operating levy will be used in the 2020-2021 school year.

Last November, the school district passed a 10-year operating levy, which included a million-dollar annual budget for transportation improvement projects, starting with the 2020-2021 academic year. To determine how that funding would be used, district, middle school and high school administrators reviewed potential improvements and made four recommendations for $954,000 in the first year. The group outlined those improvements at a March 9 special meeting of the school board.  

Those recommendations include:

• $513,000 on buses for after school activities for all middle schools and the four comprehensive high schools
• $20,000 for Dakota United Hawks after-practice transportation for athlete transportation home from the Apple Valley and Rosemount Community Centers
• $171,000 for career development shuttles for school days, among the high schools, although guaranteed transportation for all career development courses is not available; and
• $250,000 as an allocation for transportation funding at secondary schools, to and from some away sports competitions.

“I am just really pleased. As we look forward and as we think about how we spend our dollars, we have to be transparent and we have to go back to our community and say ‘This is what we’re doing and this is the effect it had,’” Superintendent Mary Kreger told Sun This Week.

Funds will be divided among schools based on the number of activities and participants, and other factors.

“Those dollars would be discretionary to the building principal to put in a transportation code to be used for transportation,” said Matt Percival, Eastview High School assistant principal for curriculum and athletics.

The funds may not be spent immediately, as the committee realized that transportation costs will likely change from year to year.

“We know this is going to drive participation for people who are not right now, because they don’t have the opportunity. Now, next year, these numbers are all going to change,” said Art Coulson, school board member.