Rocket bus parked by NR-S

After many years of service, the New Rockford-Sheyenne school district’s infamous “Rocket Bus” has been retired.

With recurring mechanical problems and significant repair costs, the Rocket Bus has long been a thorn in the side of school administrators and board members, but they learned at their regular meeting on Monday, Feb. 5, that it won’t be an issue any longer.

Updating the board on the Rocket Bus and district’s overall transportation situation was board member Mike Schaefer, on behalf of the transportation committee.

“We did decide to park the old Rocket Bus,” Schaefer told board members. “… It’s just time. We didn’t want to repair it anymore and it needed some repairs. So we removed the decals and we’re going to be asking for approval tonight to sell it.”

He added that a recently-purchased activity bus has arrived and put to good use in recent weeks, providing a more reliable option for student athletes to continue attending out-of-town events, and allowing NR-S to finally park the old Rocket Bus.

The board approved the purchase of a used activity bus last fall, as they’d expressed doubt the Rocket Bus could make it through this winter and worried about the safety of an unreliable bus transporting student athletes out of town in winter conditions.

In fact, board members have held those concerns for a few years now, and therefore purchased a nearly $200,000 activity bus in October of 2022, expecting its arrival in the summer of 2023.

That bus, however, still hasn’t arrived, which is what prompted the school board to purchase what is essentially an interim activity bus to hold them over until it does.

Once that new activity bus arrives, Schaefer said they could sell the interim bus they’re currently using and reinvest that money into the district’s transportation.

Schaefer said the activity bus they’re using now has been working well for the past few weeks since parking the Rocket Bus, even after having to address a few issues when it first arrived. Those fixes were covered by a 30-day warranty, he added.

The school board later carried a motion to approve the sale of the Rocket Bus.

Also at their meeting on February 5, board members approved the resignation of Angela Tobin.

Tobin currently teaches kindergarten for the district, and has been at NR-S since the beginning of the 2022-23 school year.

In her letter of resignation, she writes that she’s leaving to focus on her growing family, and that she’s grateful for her time at the district.

“I have greatly valued the opportunities for professional and personal development that the [New Rockford-Sheyenne] School District has provided me during my tenure,” writes Tobin.

“I have learned a lot and have had the chance to work with some amazing colleagues,” she continues. “However, after careful consideration, I have decided to be a stay-at-home mom to spend more time with my husband and new son.”

Board members unanimously approved Tobin’s resignation, which will take effect at the end of this school year.

Before adjourning, the school board also approved a school calendar for the 2024-25 school year, and scheduled this summer’s school board elections for Tuesday, June 4.

The board will reconvene for a special meeting via Zoom on Tuesday, Feb. 13 at 7:30 a.m. to review district financial information.

Their next regular meeting is scheduled for Monday, March 11 at 7 p.m.

Note: The print version of this article states that the special meeting is on Monday, Feb. 12. That is incorrect. The meeting has been set for Tuesday, Feb. 13 at 7:30 a.m.