LEWISTON — It is becoming more challenging to provide transportation for after-school activities because of driver shortages, Superintendent Jake Langlais told the School Committee on Wednesday night.

“We do have students who have not been able to participate in programs,” Assistant Superintendent Karen Paquette said. “It’s not that the program has shut down, it’s that the students have no way to get home if we don’t have transportation.”

Lewiston schools host after-school programs that usually run until 4:30 or 5:30 p.m., Langlais said. Some are funded by grants that stipulate that the district must provide transportation for students.

However, the Lewiston school district’s contract with Hudson Bus Lines does not require the company to provide transportation for after-school activities. Similar to athletic competitions, the district books transportation for these programs on an as-needed basis.

“With the recent shortage and consolidation of bus runs … what’s happening is, at the end of the day, (drivers) don’t want to take on another run,” Langlais said.

Paquette confirmed that the grants will not be immediately affected because the district is making efforts to improve the transportation situation and documenting them.

The district has also been struggling to provide regular transportation for students to and from school. In the past several months, transportation cancellations have become routine for Lewiston students and their families.

“I just wanted you to know and also say out loud to the public that we’re doing everything we can to provide those rides and maintain that after-school programming that we value,” Langlais said. “But if we don’t have drivers, we will not be able to fulfill that.”

“We’re up against a situation where we’re figuring out how we can provide the after-school programming, but providing the ride is not a given,” he added.

The district is exploring other options, including looking to other transportation companies for help and rotating which programs receive buses.

Committee member Janet Beaudoin, representing Ward 2, questioned whether the district could request help from the National Guard.

“I have more authority and responsibility than I want some days, but I don’t have the authority to enact the National Guard,” Langlais joked.

Other states, including Massachusetts, have previously deployed National Guard members to assist with school transportation. In Maine, the Guard has been deployed to assist in hospitals, but not in schools.

Langlais said there were discussions among superintendents about requesting help from the National Guard in December, but nothing came of it. He said he would try to bring the conversation back to the table.

“I think it’s worth the ask. We have to try everything,” he said.

Ward 7 committee member Paul Beauparlant asked whether the district could make use of the two vans at each school to provide transportation.

Langlais said vans can fit a maximum of six students each, and there are far too many students for vans to be an effective solution.

The committee additionally voted 8-1 to approve spending $75,000 to expand an energy audit by the city to include school facilities.

“These energy audits are almost like a 30,000-square-foot look that allows you to see the big pictures, the pieces that can save significant dollars,” Chairman Bruce Damon said.

The audit aims to identify solutions which can help the district reduce its environmental impacts from greenhouse gas emissions. Each Lewiston public school building, including the Dingley Building, will receive its own report.

Auditors will provide cost estimates to fix or improve Lewiston’s energy expenditures.

“We have an opportunity to jump into the (city’s) agreement, if approved, to save significant funds because we don’t have to get (the auditors) here, because they’ll already be here,” Langlais said.

Still, Beaudoin, who voted against the measure, said she thought $75,000 was too much money to spend this year.

“That’s a staff member,” she said. “We have underpaid teachers and underpaid ed techs, and I just feel like spending $75,000 this year, in this budget year coming up. I can’t vote for this. … I do think it’s important later on; I just don’t think this is the year to do it.”

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