Catholic elementary school students in the City of Buffalo will be provided with yellow bus service beginning with the start of the 2008-09 school year. The Buffalo Board of Education has unanimously authorized the service following a request from diocesan officials that students who reside in the City of Buffalo and attend Catholic elementary schools in the city will be availed of the same yellow bus service that public school students receive.

For years, the district provided Metro bus passes to Pre-K (4) through eighth-grade Catholic school students in Buffalo while at the same time it provided yellow bus service to public school students.

Dr. James Williams, superintendent of Buffalo Public Schools, said, “After lengthy negotiations, we are pleased to have come to this unanimous agreement with the Catholic Diocese of Buffalo.  The Buffalo Board of Education now joins our counterparts in urban districts across New York State in providing this service to children in the Buffalo Catholic Diocese.”

Bishop Edward U. Kmiec applauded the decision, adding, “We have always maintained that our students had a legal right to yellow bus service and I am pleased that Dr. Williams and the board agree. This will be a benefit to our students and their families, and I am most appreciative that we have reached agreement on this important transportation issue.”

Catholic elementary school students living three-quarters of a mile or farther away from their school will be eligible for the busing. Yellow school buses will be dedicated to each of the 12 Catholic elementary schools in the City of Buffalo. In addition, students will have the option to be bused to daycare facilities within the city at the end of the school day.

“We worked diligently to achieve this goal. We are delighted to offer this vital transportation service to our students,” said Carol A. Kostyniak, secretary for Catholic education for the Diocese of Buffalo.

John P. Fahey, assistant superintendent for service center operations for the Buffalo Public Schools met with Catholic elementary school principals in Buffalo on Jan. 23 to brief them on the new busing policy.

Applications for busing are available this spring at each of the Catholic elementary schools in Buffalo.

Public school districts in the cities of New York, Albany, Rochester, Syracuse and Utica already provide the same yellow bus service to students attending Catholic schools as those attending public schools, as required by New York State education law.