morgaine108
New member
Wanting to see if I can get some advice here. My son attends a special program through our school district because he has a serious speech disorder. His program runs only 2 hours, 5 days a week and this program is only held a certain schools in the district because it is not a large program. He was recently moved from the general "preschool for children with disabilities" to the more specific program for children with primarily speech issues, so he goes to a school now that is further away. He qualifies for transportation, both because of the distance and the fact that he is a special needs child.
We only have one car and for a while I was driving him back and forth to his new school every day, along with dropping my husband off and work and taking my other son to his school. I had requested transportation but apparently the proper forms did not get filled out, so finally I asked about it and very quickly they moved the paperwork through and the following Monday, he started on the bus. He used to ride the bus to his old school as well, but it was a different bus. I am not sure how safe the situation on the old bus was because I was never on the bus to see it. However, today, when I got back to my house after dropping my husband off, the bus was pulled up in front of my driveway, about 15 min early. I guess we are the first on the route. I quickly got my son out of the car and took him over to the bus but the driver said they wouldn't leave yet since they were so early. I said good...since I needed to write his "news" for the day in his notebook. I took his notebook out and began writing and she invited me to sit on the bus and write it....so I did since it was easier than standing. When I finished writing and gave him back his backpack, I noticed, just at a glance, that he was in a Cosco Scenera seat, and his straps were WAY loose and chest clip at his belly. I pulled the chest clip up, but the aide was right next to me, taking his bag, etc. and I couldn't reach to adjust the straps.
Now I am giving myself an ulcer over this and feel I need to address the issue. I cannot let him ride to school like that every day, and I worry that the other kids are also riding this way. The driver mentioned when she invited me on that she not supposed to/doesn't usually allow parents on the bus, but since there weren't any other children on the bus right now it was ok. So, I don't know if confidentiality is the reason for that or some other but her letting me on is what gave me the knowledge of the seat situation and perhaps she isn't supposed to let me do that???
So I guess, I am asking, what is the best way to address this to help keep the kids safe and yet not make the new driver and aide hate me? I found contact info for the assistant director on the website and drafted this letter, but wondered if anyone had any suggestions?
Dear Mrs. Smith,
I am a parent of two children in XYZ ISD and one of my children rides the bus as a special needs student. He attends a different school than his home school because of the program he is in. He just recently moved to this program and moved from his home school due to a change in his IEP. I don't wish to create a bad relationship with his driver/aide but something very much concerns me about his transportation situation and honestly, the situation of all the children being transported in this manner.
Just for background sake, I used to be a registered CPS tech in my home state, so child passenger safety is an interest of mine. Otherwise I may not have noticed this, but the fact is now that I have seen it I cannot let it be ignored as it comprises the safety of the children.
My son's transportation was not set up immediately at the ARD, so I know he was a last minute addition and that may be part of the problem here, but regardless, we are asked what their weight is for a reason, and that is so that they may be placed in the correct seat for their weight. My son is 42 lbs. Granted, there are many seats on the market today that provide a harness for children over 40 lbs, but the car seats that the district purchases are not one of those seats. From what I could tell, they look like Cosco Sceneras, which are a good safe seat for young children but their max weight limit, forward or rear facing is 40 lbs. So, if a child is over that limit they should either be placed in a seat with a harness that has a higher weight limit, or a booster seat. A harness that holds up to 40 lbs is not going to be sufficient to protect him in the event of a crash. I know that compartmentalization on a bus also protects the occupants, but if there are going to be carseats, then they need to be the correct ones for the child.
Secondly, when I saw my child buckled in his seat his seat straps were so loose I could have fit probably the width of both of my arms in between the strap and his body. And, the chest clip was not positioned over his chest, but hanging way down near his belly. Even if he was in the correct seat for his weight, this is completely unsafe. I can only hazard to guess that the straps have not been adjusted for him. And that this is probably the case for most if not all the students who ride the buses with these seats.
I do not want to get my driver or aide in trouble for this, especially seeing how we are brand new to this bus and I would like to keep a positive relationship going with them. But, I would think that the district should have adequate training in place for those who are directly transporting children in carseats and boosters on a day to day basis so that they are educated on the proper use of the seats. Carseats are not effective if they are not used correctly.
Any thoughts?
Thanks!
Andrea
We only have one car and for a while I was driving him back and forth to his new school every day, along with dropping my husband off and work and taking my other son to his school. I had requested transportation but apparently the proper forms did not get filled out, so finally I asked about it and very quickly they moved the paperwork through and the following Monday, he started on the bus. He used to ride the bus to his old school as well, but it was a different bus. I am not sure how safe the situation on the old bus was because I was never on the bus to see it. However, today, when I got back to my house after dropping my husband off, the bus was pulled up in front of my driveway, about 15 min early. I guess we are the first on the route. I quickly got my son out of the car and took him over to the bus but the driver said they wouldn't leave yet since they were so early. I said good...since I needed to write his "news" for the day in his notebook. I took his notebook out and began writing and she invited me to sit on the bus and write it....so I did since it was easier than standing. When I finished writing and gave him back his backpack, I noticed, just at a glance, that he was in a Cosco Scenera seat, and his straps were WAY loose and chest clip at his belly. I pulled the chest clip up, but the aide was right next to me, taking his bag, etc. and I couldn't reach to adjust the straps.
Now I am giving myself an ulcer over this and feel I need to address the issue. I cannot let him ride to school like that every day, and I worry that the other kids are also riding this way. The driver mentioned when she invited me on that she not supposed to/doesn't usually allow parents on the bus, but since there weren't any other children on the bus right now it was ok. So, I don't know if confidentiality is the reason for that or some other but her letting me on is what gave me the knowledge of the seat situation and perhaps she isn't supposed to let me do that???
So I guess, I am asking, what is the best way to address this to help keep the kids safe and yet not make the new driver and aide hate me? I found contact info for the assistant director on the website and drafted this letter, but wondered if anyone had any suggestions?
Dear Mrs. Smith,
I am a parent of two children in XYZ ISD and one of my children rides the bus as a special needs student. He attends a different school than his home school because of the program he is in. He just recently moved to this program and moved from his home school due to a change in his IEP. I don't wish to create a bad relationship with his driver/aide but something very much concerns me about his transportation situation and honestly, the situation of all the children being transported in this manner.
Just for background sake, I used to be a registered CPS tech in my home state, so child passenger safety is an interest of mine. Otherwise I may not have noticed this, but the fact is now that I have seen it I cannot let it be ignored as it comprises the safety of the children.
My son's transportation was not set up immediately at the ARD, so I know he was a last minute addition and that may be part of the problem here, but regardless, we are asked what their weight is for a reason, and that is so that they may be placed in the correct seat for their weight. My son is 42 lbs. Granted, there are many seats on the market today that provide a harness for children over 40 lbs, but the car seats that the district purchases are not one of those seats. From what I could tell, they look like Cosco Sceneras, which are a good safe seat for young children but their max weight limit, forward or rear facing is 40 lbs. So, if a child is over that limit they should either be placed in a seat with a harness that has a higher weight limit, or a booster seat. A harness that holds up to 40 lbs is not going to be sufficient to protect him in the event of a crash. I know that compartmentalization on a bus also protects the occupants, but if there are going to be carseats, then they need to be the correct ones for the child.
Secondly, when I saw my child buckled in his seat his seat straps were so loose I could have fit probably the width of both of my arms in between the strap and his body. And, the chest clip was not positioned over his chest, but hanging way down near his belly. Even if he was in the correct seat for his weight, this is completely unsafe. I can only hazard to guess that the straps have not been adjusted for him. And that this is probably the case for most if not all the students who ride the buses with these seats.
I do not want to get my driver or aide in trouble for this, especially seeing how we are brand new to this bus and I would like to keep a positive relationship going with them. But, I would think that the district should have adequate training in place for those who are directly transporting children in carseats and boosters on a day to day basis so that they are educated on the proper use of the seats. Carseats are not effective if they are not used correctly.
Any thoughts?
Thanks!
Andrea