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Successful Conversion & Growing Partnership Xenia Community Schools Finds Trusted Partner in First Student
Founded in 1803, Xenia is a bedroom community east of
Dayton, OH with an extensive railroad history. Derived from a Greek word meaning hospitality, Xenia is close-knit and family- oriented. It’s also a city that had to make some tough deci- sions to balance their school budget. Over the years, declin- ing revenues and income taxes collided with rising costs for health insurance, utilities, diesel and a variety of other neces- sary expenses. By 2009, the budget issues had expanded to the point the Xenia Board of Education (XBOE) knew it had to make some drastic changes – and make them soon. Dr. Deborah Piotrowski was hired by the XBOE as the Super-
intendent of Xenia Community Schools in 2010. She was well aware of the fierce financial difficulty that the district faced and knew they would need to endure tough challenges to change course and reduce the budget by over 20%. With her diverse background in corporate management and education, she quickly set her sights on reducing costs and getting back to the business of educating children. In just the first year, the school district made great strides in reducing costs. They needed additional budget cuts to reach their goal and looked at opportunities that would allow them to return their focus to education. This included contracting non-core services. The XBOE’s decision to contract student transportation was
not an easy one. The tight community of Xenia was comfort- able with the district managing transportation operations, but the anticipated savings from contracting couldn’t be ignored. Piotrowski and Christy Fielding, Director of Business and
Technology for the school district, worked together to drive the internal changes necessary to solicit proposals and gain approvals. They then wrote a comprehensive request for pro- posal that covered all the district’s transportation needs and set about the review process. Upon receiving bid responses, Fielding organized meetings
with the transportation providers. After a thorough review of all applicants, Xenia knew that First Student was their ideal partner for solving its transportation needs. “There was a feeling by administration that First Student was the company
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that was going to stick by us and solve our problems as they came,” Fielding says. “And they weren’t going to walk away when things got tough.” First Student openly shared information with the XBOE, driv-
ers, and community. They presented solutions for each of the district’s concerns and then met with the bus drivers to listen to their concerns and address questions. First Student started providing transportation services in
July, 2012. The solid partnership between Xenia and First Student immediately eased concerns of the parents and com- munity. They have seen that it’s still the same friendly drivers taking their children to and from school every day and that parents still have someone to contact directly if there is a con- cern. And all buses, new and existing, have advanced tech- nologies and safety measures. “I don’t think parents or the
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public really think about it being First Student anymore. It’s Xenia Community School District transporting their children,” Fielding says. Today, the district, its employees, and the community realize the decision to outsource was clearly the right one. Contract- ing their school bus services strengthened their transporta- tion operations. Xenia is proud that it has been leading Green County for
value-added enhancements and student growth, and the district attributes this success to its focus on education and curriculum. Xenia has been able to turn its focus back toward education and away from transportation thanks in part to its partnership with First Student. “Xenia Community Schools are the experts in education; First Student is the expert in trans- portation,” Piotrowski says.
© 2013 First Student Inc.
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