Detroit district: Yellow bus pilot improved attendance for Henry Ford High School students

May 7, 2026

Detroit Public Schools Community District conducted a $600,000 pilot program providing yellow bus service to high school students at two schools to address chronic absenteeism issues. The initiative showed promising results at Henry Ford High School, where frequent bus riders reduced their chronic absenteeism by 8. 5 percentage points, but proved inconclusive at East English Village Preparatory Academy due to low participation rates.

Who is affected

High school students at Henry Ford High School and East English Village Preparatory Academy at Finney
102 Henry Ford students who rode the buses (59 riding more than 10 times, 43 riding 1-9 times)
29 East English Village students who used bus service (18 riding more than 10 times, 11 riding 1-9 times)
263 eligible Henry Ford students who did not ride buses
Over 300 eligible East English Village students who never participated
141 Henry Ford students and 266 East English Village students ineligible due to living outside boundaries
Detroit high school students generally who rely on unreliable city bus service
Detroit Public Schools Community District administrators and board members
Superintendent Nikolai Vitti, Board Chair LaTrice McClendon, and Board member Monique Bryant

What action is being taken

No explicit ongoing actions are stated in the article. The pilot program ran during the 2024-25 school year and the article discusses results as that school year wraps up, but does not describe current continuing actions.

Why it matters

This pilot program addresses a critical educational equity issue affecting Detroit high school students who face significant transportation barriers. With chronic absenteeism rates at 82% at Henry Ford and 77% at East English Village—far exceeding the district's already high 60.9% average—reliable transportation directly impacts students' ability to attend school regularly and receive consistent instruction. The unreliable city bus system forces some students to spend hours traveling to school and creates safety concerns at bus stops, making yellow bus service a potential solution for reducing absenteeism. The pilot's success at Henry Ford demonstrates that targeted transportation investments can meaningfully improve attendance rates, which correlates with academic achievement and graduation outcomes, particularly for students in neighborhood schools where concentrations of nearby residents make bus routes more efficient and cost-effective.

What's next

Budget discussions for the 2026-27 school year will begin at next month's committee meeting
The board must approve a budget by the end of June
The district may explore expanding the program to certain other schools (though Superintendent Vitti stated he would not scale to every high school)
Any continuation or expansion of the pilot requires a majority vote from board members, but no formal proposals have been made yet
The district will continue searching for transportation solutions for students on the east side where population density is lower

Read full article from source: bridgedetroit.com