Bake Sale for Buses

Baltimore does not have its own school bus system.  Our children rely on regular MTA buses to get to and from school.  

Beginning this year over 13,000 Baltimore City students were subject to a two-hour decrease in ridership.  Their ability to ride was cut from 8 PM to 6 PM, leaving thousands of kids that participate in after school programs stranded.

What’s the big deal?

Baltimore City School Day’s typically end between 3 PM– 4 PM, however about 10,000 students participate in after school programs. After school time is crucial to a student’s academic success, personal growth, and cultural exposure.

Reducing evening ridership has prevented approximately 2,000 students from receiving homework help and tutoring, attending programs for enrichment in the arts, or joining a sports team in their school community for fear they won’t have a ride home.

An extra two hours may be just the amount of time needed to move one student a step closer to reaching their highest potential.

Every student deserves access to after school programs!

How can we change this?

We need to get our students back on the bus. As a community, we are raising money to cover the cost for an extra two hours of ridership for Baltimore City School students attending after school programs.

Baltimore City Public Schools conducted a survey of students in 2015 to evaluate student ridership. Students public transportation usage was tracked during four-hour intervals each weekday. The study found on average 1,896 students use public transportation after 6 pm.

The funding gap must be filled for these students to ride the bus between 6 pm and 8 pm.

How much does it cost?

Baltimore City Public Schools covers the cost of two rides for each student using public transportation plus an additional ride for 1,000 students. Each trip cost $1.20 per student.  

We are raising funds to cover the extra trip for an additional 1,000 students, which cost $1.20 per student.  There are 81 days remaining in this school year, so it will cost $97,200 for 1,000 Baltimore City School students to ride the bus for an extra two hours after school.


How will your donation be used?

All donations will go to the Fund for Educational Excellence, a nonprofit organization working to improve student achievement in Baltimore City Public Schools.

The Fund for Educational Excellence will use these donations to pay for public transportation services provided by MTA to Baltimore City Public School students between 6 pm – 8 pm.

Both the MTA and Baltimore City Public Schools have agreed to this arrangement.

While this will provide a solution for the last 81 days of this school year, it is a temporary solution. We are working together with Baltimore City government, MTA, and Baltimore City Public Schools to develop a sustainable contract for future school years.

Recently, Baltimore City has experienced a lot, yet our students remain resilient. Let’s send a clear message to our youth – We see you. We hear you. You matter.

Let’s get them back on the bus!