Texas environmental agency awards grant to local school district

LIVE OAK, Texas — Judson Independent School District (JISD) has received a $249,304 grant from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s (TCEQ) Clean School Bus Program.

The funds will allow the district to retrofit 44 school buses with emissions-reducing equipment.

“We are cognizant that our Judson families live, work and play in the very neighborhoods where we provide transportation. Any opportunity we have as a district to improve our environment is valuable to the communities we serve,” said Dr. Willis Mackey, JISD superintendent of schools.

This is the second grant JISD has received from TCEQ to retrofit buses in its 187-vehicle fleet. For fiscal year 2008, TCEQ awarded the district a $243,638 grant to retrofit 43 buses.

TCEQ’s Clean School Bus Program offers funding and resources to Texas schools statewide to reduce school bus diesel exhaust emissions. The program has approximately $8 million available for fiscal year 2009. The application deadline is Dec. 15.

For more information, visit www.texascleanschoolbus.org.