Author:
Kathy O'Reilly Larmand
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Date Posted: 11:29:26 09/02/03 Tue
In reply to:
Karen
's message, "Question" on 14:44:44 09/01/03 Mon
Karen,
In retrospect, $150 per child for a private bus user fee may not be the issue. If you've been reading the Boston Globe over the past few weeks, you will see many towns are now instituting user fees for public students as well. See attached articles:
PARENTS ASKED TO PAY MORE FOR ACTIVITIES
Published on August 28, 2003
Author(s): David Rattigan, Globe Correspondent
Weather permitting, Merrimac's Beth O'Neil, 41, a single mother of two, planned to walk her first-grader to school yesterday.
O'Neil lives on Church Street, just four blocks from the Sweetsir Elementary School. She'd rather put her daughter on the bus, but can't afford this year's $180 bus fee for those living within a 2-mile radius of the school.
"At least we have a sidewalk to walk on," she said. "A lot of side streets in this town don't
Click for complete article (760 words)
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STUDENT FEES HELP EASE BUDGET SQUEEZE
Published on August 24, 2003
Author(s): Erica Noonan, Globe Staff
Student fees help ease budget squeeze
The first week of school may be exciting for students, but in many communities, it is getting more and more expensive for parents. Riding the bus to high school in Winchester costs $475 a year. Playing a varsity sport in North Andover costs $250. Instrumental music lessons in Lexington cost $250. Full-day kindergarten in Andover and Stoneham costs $3,500.
Hefty activity and user fees are found across the northwestern suburbs but are most prevalent in
Click for complete article (1297 words)
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A SURVEY OF SCHOOL FEES
Published on August 24, 2003
A survey of school fees
A sampling of activity and user fees charged by school districts in the region for the 2003-2004 academic year:
Acton/Boxborough Regional School District
Athletics, $110 per sport (family cap of $440); marching band, $50; student parking, $100
Andover
Bus fee, grades 7-12, $235 ($470 family cap); middle school extracurricular activity fee, $75; kindergarten full-day fee, $3,500 annually (10 percent discount for twins); high school athletic fee, $100 per
Click for complete article (814 words)
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As I wrote about in a letter to the editor which appeared in the Lowell Sun in late August, this issue is not about public vs. private. This is not about a $150 user fee to parents who already pay astronomical private school tuition fees. This is about ALL children living in Dracut, regardless of where they attend school. This is about state budget cuts affecting ALL taxpayers of Dracut.
The private school children have been the first to be charged a user fee. But as the Boston Globe articles point out, public schools in several areas of Massachusetts are being affected. I fear ALL Dracut students will be paying users fees in the near future. So once again, we should be focusing our efforts on joining together as one community in the hopes of putting ALL of our Dracut children first, regardless of where they attend school. We should be focused on ALL Dracut parents who pay taxes. The user fee for private school busing is just the tip of the iceberg.
-- Kathy O'Reilly Larmand
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