Introduction (Updated: School Year 2024-25)

As part of the Home-to-School-Transportation (HTST) funding requirements, Sunnyvale School Districts Board of Education must adopt the updates to the HTST Plan annually. The updates to the HTST Plan contain information on the funding we received from the State in 2024 as well as other changes or updates to Board Policies, Administrative Regulations, or information.  

Our HTST Plan will continue to be one that we learn from and adapt each year. Over the course of the past 12 months we have been focusing on the areas that we want to build on. Those areas are 1) expanding our HTST program to each school site, 2) increasing registration efficiency, and 3) increasing security and safety.  

Sunnyvale School Districts Policy and Practice (No change from previously adopted plan)

Our goal is to serve and provide safe and reliable Home-to-School-Transportation (HTST) to as many students (TK-8) as we can with the resources and constraints that we have.  

For this initial rollout of our HTST program, we will have a capped registration process that will allot a specified number of seats to our students. This would require the parents of students who qualify for HTST to register their students for this service. These caps would be set based on our ability to efficiently/effectively provide bussing. These caps are also influenced by the prioritization of students who qualify for HTST.

District staff worked on revising and preparing policies and regulations to create our HTST Plan. These can be seen in Board Policy 3541 and Administrative Regulation 3540.

The District will prioritize student eligibility to and from schools of residence as follows:

Priority One:

Students residing within Safety Zone Transportation areas, as defined in the Transportation Safety Plan, will have first priority when registering for transportation services.

Priority Two:

If there are still available registration spots available after priority one, Transitional Kindergarten through fifth grade students who live more than one-mile walking distance from their school of residence and students in grades six through eight who live more than one and a half miles walking distance from their school of residence will have second priority when registering for transportation services.

Priority Three:

If there are still available registration spots available after applying priority two, then students that qualify as socioeconomically disadvantaged will have third priority when registering for transportation services.

Priority Four:

If there are still available registration spots after applying priority three, then students who are identified as English language learners will have the fourth priority when registering for transportation services.

The Superintendent or designee may authorize transportation within the minimum distance when special circumstances and/or safety concerns exist.

This has been created to increase the District’s ability to safely provide HTST to our students and is in addition to the District’s transportation requirements for students with disabilities and/or students experiencing homelessness.

Students with Disabilities (No change from previously adopted plan)

Sunnyvale School District will continue to work diligently to provide students with disabilities Home-to-School-Transportation services. Our district provides alternative transportation to students with disabilities in the form of;

1. Contracted services from an outside carrier,
2. Reimbursing mileage expenses to a parent or guardian who transports the student to and from school,  
3. Other appropriate methods 

These options are at no cost to the parent or guardian of the student. These options are all currently offered by Sunnyvale School District and would not be reduced or negatively impacted as part of the HTST Plan moving forward.  

These can be seen in Board Policy 3541.2 and Administrative Regulation 3541.2.  

McKinney-Vento Students (No change from previously adopted plan)

The Governing Board desires to ensure that students who are homeless have access to the same free and appropriate public education provided to other students within the district. The District shall provide students who are homeless with access to education and other services necessary for them to meet the same challenging academic standards as other students.

Sunnyvale’s current practice is to prioritize students that qualify under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Students Act with transportation services in the form of;

1. Home-to-School-Transportation services as part of our general education bussing services, if the student resides in an area on one of the existing routes,
2. If the student does not reside in an area on an existing bus route, that student is provided transportation in the form of a private contract service provider. This is set up through the Student Services Department 

Our HTST Plan will continue to involve our Student Services Department to ensure we account for all McKinney-Vento students. We will use the available registration information that we have from previous years to hold seats open for those students who would qualify but may not have access to registration information.  

Funding Plan (New: School Year 2024-25)

Our projected apportionment for 2024-25 is $237,946. This is an increase from what our report showed last year, and our team will be working to identify specific areas in which we can use this reimbursement to continue our efforts to expand our services to our students.  

Implementation Updates (New: School Year 2024-25)

1) Expanding our services:  

The 2024-25 school year marked the first full year of providing HTST services to Cherry Chase and Cumberland Elementary Schools. With 95 registered students from Cumberland and 120 from Cherry Chase, this expansion represents a significant step forward in increasing accessibility to our transportation services. However, these registration numbers do not directly translate into daily ridership, as many students use the service only one way or on specific days. Isolating the students and developing a way to optimize the registration numbers into daily ridership will be an on-going challenge for our team to address.  

Additionally, we have expanded our after-school transportation services for middle school students. Initially, HTST services were introduced for students enrolled in the Sunnyvale Middle School KLAS (Right at School) program. At the start of this calendar year, we extended this service to Columbia Middle School’s KLAS program as well. In February, further expansion included transportation for registered students participating in homework clubs, sports practices, and other after-school programs ending at 4:30 PM.

To accommodate these after-school needs, we now operate two dedicated buses— one serving each middle school—making trips at both 4:30 PM and 6:00 PM daily. Interestingly, these additional services have been underutilized, with ridership ranging from just 1 to 10 students per trip. We continue to track ridership data to assess usage trends and explore strategies to increase participation in these expanded services.

2) Increasing registration efficiency:  

This year, we implemented a fully automated registration process through our Transfinder software system, significantly improving efficiency and accessibility for families. By leveraging this platform, we were able to easily identify qualifying students and generate automated registration emails, ensuring a smoother and more organized enrollment experience. Additionally, we integrated survey questions within the registration email, allowing us to track acknowledgments from families regarding school bus rules and regulations.

The system also provides real-time data on registrations, enabling us to monitor sign-ups by geographic area and optimize routing. This data-driven approach ensures that we can better allocate resources and improve overall transportation efficiency.

These improvements are the result of lessons learned from previous years, and the impact is already evident in the increased number of registrations. By refining our process, we have made HTST services more accessible to families while also strengthening our ability to plan and adapt based on demand.

3) Increasing safety and security:  

This school year, we have taken significant steps to enhance the safety and security of our HTST program by installing security cameras on every bus and implementing RFID-integrated bus passes. These advancements are designed to create a safer environment for students while also improving operational oversight.

The addition of security cameras has helped reduce vandalism and provides our team with the ability to review and address incidents more effectively. This added layer of security supports better enforcement of safety protocols and ensures a more secure experience for all riders.

The introduction of RFID bus passes has increased our ability to track student ridership. These passes allow for accurate attendance records and enable drivers to quickly verify registered students, ensuring that only eligible riders board the buses. Additionally, this data supports our efforts to demonstrate the critical role HTST plays in student attendance and overall educational access.  

Development of the HTST Plan (No change from previously adopted plan)

District staff will meet at the end of each calendar year to review the HTST Plan and the areas that can be further developed or improved. This will be a multidepartment collaboration including Student Services, Transportation, our site administrators, parents, and local agencies.  

This will give district staff the ability to make any changes to the HTST Plan and present those prior to April 1 each year.

Evidence of Consultation

Consultation Requirements with Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) and Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) have been completed by the Santa Clara County Office of Education on behalf of the following school districts in Santa Clara County: Alum Rock, Berryessa, Cambrian, Cupertino, Evergreen, Franklin-McKinley, Loma Prieta, Los Altos, Luther Burbank, Moreland, Mount Pleasant, Mountain View Whisman, Oak Grove, Sunnyvale, and Union Elementary School Districts; Campbell, East Side, Fremont, and Mountain View Los Altos High School Districts; and Gilroy, Milpitas, Morgan Hill, Palo Alto, San Jose, and Santa Clara Unified School Districts. Consultation requirements for EdCode 38900.1 for these school districts in Santa Clara County are satisfied with the following information.

Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (regional local transit authority)

VTA Contact: Russell Anstadt, Service and Planning Department; russell.anstadt@vta.org  

1. VTA scheduling department has a list of the middle schools and high schools in proximity to VTA transit lines. Schools are contacted by VTA on an annual basis with adjustments made to meet any changes to school bell schedules 

a. this includes school service routes (lines 246, 247, 256, 270, 287, 288, 288L & 288M)  

b. extra buses are also provided to prevent overloads for schools along VTA’s regular service lines  

2. There are currently 40 transit lines that serve students in Santa Clara County schools

a. six routes (lines 23, 40, 51, 53, 55 & 70) require supplemental service to prevent overloads  

3. There are not any other specific resources or programs that VTA offers to school districts  

4. VTA’s website provides school service route information available to the public and school districts. Below is a link to VTA’s website regarding school service

a. https://www.vta.org/school-trippers  

5. For inquiries regarding adding/adjusting routes, contact the VTA representative above  

Bay Area Air Quality Management District (local pollution control/air quality district)  

BAAQMD Contact: Abby Young, Climate Protection Manager; ayoung@baaqmd.org -  

1. BAAQMD funding is available to help upgrade or replace older, high-emitting, heavy-duty school buses with newer, alternative fuel or zero-emission school buses. Resources can be found at https://www.baaqmd.gov/funding-and-incentives/businesses-and-fleets/schoolbuses  
2. BAAQMD developed the enclosed webpage to provide consultation information for school districts to assist in the development of the Home-to-School Transportation plans. https://www.baaqmd.gov/plans-and-climate/climate-protection/local-governmentsupport/school-district-transportation-service-plans.

Conclusion (New: School Year 2024-25)

This school year 2024-25 has been one of the most developmental in regard to evolving and further developing our HTST program. We are continuing to push forward with expanding our services, increasing safety & security, and we are understanding how we can utilize data to tell the story of how our HTST program is positively impacting our students' attendance and success.  

This update to Sunnyvale School Districts HTST Plan have been developed collaboratively with district staff and the Board of Education. District staff is confident that this plan meets the requirements of the HTST apportionment as spelled out in Education Code 39800.1. District staff also anticipates that this plan will need to be adjusted annually to best serve our students and their families.