Moms’ careers hit by school drop-off demands

Introduction to the Issue

CHICAGO (AP) — When Elizabeth Rivera’s phone would ring during the overnight shift, it was usually because the bus didn’t show up again and one of her three kids needed a ride to school. After leaving early from her job at a Houston-area Amazon warehouse several times, Rivera was devastated — but not surprised — when she was fired. “Right now, I’m kind of depressed about it,” said Rivera, 42. “I’m depressed because of the simple fact that it’s kind of hard to find a job, and there’s bills I have to pay. But at the same time, the kids have to go to school.”

The Impact on Parents

Rivera is far from the only parent forced to choose between their job and their kids’ education, according to a new poll conducted by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and HopSkipDrive, a company that relies on artificial intelligence and a network of drivers using their own vehicles to help school districts address transportation challenges. Most parents drive their children to school, the survey found, and those responsibilities can have a major impact. About one-third of parents say taking their kids to school has caused them to miss work, according to the poll. Roughly 3 in 10 say they’ve been prevented from seeking or taking work opportunities. And 11% say school transportation has even caused them to lose a job.

Smaller Paychecks, Bigger Vulnerability

The impact falls disproportionately on lower-income families. Around 4 in 10 parents with a household income below $100,000 a year said they’ve missed work due to pick-up needs, compared with around 3 in 10 parents with a household income of $100,000 or more. Meredyth Saieed and her two children, ages 7 and 10, used to live in a homeless shelter in North Carolina. Saieed said the kids’ father has been incarcerated since May. Although the family qualified for government-paid transportation to school, Saieed said the kids would arrive far too early or leave too late under that system. So, she decided to drop them off and pick them up herself.

Not all Kids have Access to a School Bus

Although about half of parents living in rural areas and small towns say their kids still take a bus to school, that fell to about one-third of parents in urban areas. A separate AP-NORC/HopSkipDrive survey of school administrators found that nearly half said school bus driver shortages were a “major problem” in their district. Some school systems don’t offer bus service. In other cases, the available options don’t work for families. The community in Long Island, New York, where police Officer Dorothy Criscuolo’s two children attend school provides bus service, but she doesn’t want them riding it because they’ve been diagnosed as neurodivergent. “I can’t have my kids on a bus for 45 minutes, with all the screaming and yelling, and then expect them to be OK once they get to school, be regulated and learn,” said Criscuolo, 49. “I think it’s impossible.”

The Transportation Burden Falls Heavier on Moms

Mothers are most often the ones driving their children to and from school, with 68% saying they typically take on this task, compared with 57% of fathers. Most mothers, 55%, say they have missed work, have lost jobs or were kept from personal or professional opportunities because of school transportation needs, compared with 45% of dads. Syrina Franklin says she didn’t have a choice. The father of her two high school-age children is deceased, so she has to take them and a 5-year-old grandson to different schools on Chicago’s South Side. After she was late to work more than 10 times, she lost her job as a mail sorter at the post office and turned to driving for Uber and Instacart to make ends meet.

Parents Want More Options

Although the use of school buses has been declining for years across the U.S., many parents would like to see schools offer other options. Roughly 4 in 10 parents said getting their kids to school would be “much easier” or “somewhat easier” if there were more school bus routes, school-arranged transportation services or improved pedestrian and bike infrastructure near school. Around a third cited a desire for earlier or later start times, or centralized pick-up and drop-off locations for school buses. Joanna McFarland, the CEO and co-founder of HopSkipDrive, said districts need to reclaim the responsibility of making sure students have a ride to school. “I don’t think the way to solve this is to ask parents to look for innovative ideas,” McFarland said. “I think we really need to come up with innovative ideas systematically and institutionally.”

Conclusion

The burden of school transportation on parents, especially mothers, is significant and can have lasting impacts on their careers and personal lives. The lack of reliable and accessible school transportation options forces many parents to choose between their jobs and ensuring their children get to school safely. It is crucial for schools and communities to work together to find innovative solutions to this problem, whether through increased bus routes, improved infrastructure, or alternative transportation services. By doing so, we can help alleviate the stress and financial burden on families and ensure that all children have equal access to education.

FAQs

1. What percentage of parents say taking their kids to school has caused them to miss work?
   • About one-third of parents say taking their kids to school has caused them to miss work.
2. How does the household income affect the impact of school transportation on parents?
   • The impact falls disproportionately on lower-income families, with around 4 in 10 parents with a household income below $100,000 a year saying they’ve missed work due to pick-up needs.
3. Why do some parents prefer not to use the school bus service for their children?
   • Some parents prefer not to use the school bus service due to concerns about their child’s special needs or the bus environment not being suitable for their child.
4. What solutions do parents suggest to make getting their kids to school easier?
   • Parents suggest more school bus routes, school-arranged transportation services, improved pedestrian and bike infrastructure near school, earlier or later start times, or centralized pick-up and drop-off locations for school buses.
5. What can schools and communities do to address the issue of school transportation?
   • Schools and communities can work together to find innovative solutions such as increasing bus routes, improving infrastructure, or providing alternative transportation services to ensure all children have access to education without putting a burden on their parents.
     

     By JEFF McMURRAY and LINLEY SANDERS, Associated Press

     Originally Published: September 4, 2025 at 7:44 AM EDT