DAYTON — A judge could soon make a ruling on Dayton high school students using city buses to get to school.
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The district had another hearing in Columbus with the state over students using RTA buses to get to school on Thursday.
As previously reported, the district was granted a temporary restraining order (TRO) in the case last week, allowing them to buy RTA bus passes for high school students.
The TRO only lasts through Thursday’s hearing and decision, but if they get an injunction, it would block the state law until the case goes to court.
The real issue is whether the RTA hub will continue to be the road to classrooms for high school students. The two sides have different views on whether that should be the case.
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As shown on News Center 7 at 5:00, Dayton’s superintendent, Dr. David Lawrence, testified at Thursday’s hearing that the new state law will keep many high school students home.
“This could have a devastating impact on our families,” Lawrence said.
The superintendent also told a magistrate that the district has been using RTA and transferring students downtown since 2022.
RTA, the city, and downtown businesses have expressed opposition to the practice. They point out hundreds of calls for police service near the RTA hub every year for fights, assaults, and shootings.
The deadly shooting of Dunbar High School student Alfred Hale in April while he waited on a bus to school led to the new law.
“We’ve had homicides down there, shootings, riots. It’s just not a good place for somebody’s 14-year-old daughter,” State Representative Phil Plummer said in his testimony.
Plummer went on to say he’s constantly taking calls, texts, and emails showing him or complaining about the problem. He felt state lawmakers had to act when groups working with the schools couldn’t find a solution.
“I want them to get to school, but I also want them to get to school safely,” Plummer said. “What we’re doing right now is an unsafe practice.”
District leaders say they don’t have any financially viable options right now. They say keeping high schoolers away from the hub doesn’t solve anyone’s problems.
As shown on News Center 7 at 6:00, district parents also took the stand to testify at Thursday’s hearing. One mother of three Dayton high schoolers said if the district isn’t providing some form of transportation, her kids’ education would be in jeopardy.
“So if I can’t pick them up, there’s no point in dropping them off and it would take them hours to walk home from school,” the mother said.
Another mother told the court is would be a “hardship” if they weren’t able to use the RTA buses.
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