Dougherty School Board members sworn in; student transportation plan in place
Velvet Riggins, Geraldine Hudley, Robert Youngblood, James Bush take four-year oaths
Dougherty County School Board members, from left, Velvet Riggins, Geraldine Hudley, Robert Youngblood and James Bush, were sworn in for new four-year terms Monday evening by Dougherty County Probate Court Judge Nancy Stephenson. (Staff Photo: Terry Lewis)
By Terry Lewis
ALBANY — The Dougherty County School Board held its first meeting of the year Monday evening, and the gathering was dominated by administrative matters.
Dougherty County Probate Judge Nancy Stephenson swore in board members Velvet Riggins, Geraldine Hudley, Robert Youngblood and James Bush for four-year terms.
In other board action, the body voted unanimously to keep Riggins as the board chair and Youngblood as the vice chair.
“I certainly appreciate the board allowing me the opportunity to serve in this capacity,” Riggins said. “This board has always been good to work with, and I’d like to thank them for making my job easier.”
The start of the system’s spring semester has been delayed by a devastating storm that hit Albany Jan. 2. And while classes are set to resume Tuesday, School System spokesman J.D. Sumner said the system will face issues with transportation once classes resume.
“Our biggest concern is transportation, because many students have been displaced,” he said. “We are in the process of putting together a plan that will stay in place for the next 30 days. We want to make sure the students get on the correct bus in the morning and afternoon.”
Sumner noted that the school system transports between 5,000 and 6,000 students to and from school each school day. Those numbers account for one-third of the system’s students.
DCSS Assistant Superintendent Jack Willis said he expects some bumps in the road early.
“If a driver makes a stop and knows that a child should not be on this bus, he or she will be taken to the school at the end of the route anyway,” Willis said. “Then we will make arrangements to transport the child to his or her school. We will not leave a kid standing at the bus stop.”
Willis added that the DCSS will label the front of each school bus with its destination school.
“It’s going to be stressful at first, but we can make it work if the parents do what they are supposed to do,” he said.
Parents or guardians with questions about school bus pickups or dropoffs should call (229) 431-1265 for more information.
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