Why don't school bus drivers have the power to kick students off the bus?

T J

Well, some do, but the problem is that you are leaving a child when you are supposed to transport them. I assume the more proper thing to do is to deliver them to the school and then report them to the Principal (or whoever).

Some buses are installing videocameras now too, to capture misbehavior.

If my child misbehaved, I would want to know about it, but I wouldn't want him just dumped at the side of the road six miles from home.

clarkz2001

They did when I went to school. They also had the power to whip one too. Laws change even if they are not for the good. Thats whats wrong with our young people now.

thmtom

The best is to write a student discipline referral to the principle and let him deal with it. Make sure you put down that the student is causing a safety issue due to his behavior. I hope you have a good administration that will back you up. Also document everything.

Firecracker .

You can.
You just have to do it properly, which can sometimes be a royal pain. You wouldn't actually be kicking them off, just refusing to transport them. Many, many years ago, I responded to the repeated actions of a bully. The school bus driver pulled over and threw both of us off for fighting. We were not in the same town as the school, or the town we lived in. Somewhere in the middle. The driver came within a hair of losing her job. Why? When we boarded the bus, she accepted responsibility for us. Leaving us in a different town was not a reponsible action.
Kids can be refused transport, at the school, or at the house.
There are ways to have them removed while en-route. This usually involves the police.

=Q=

Laws change and they want the schools to have the power to do that even though it's for the worst. They started that way before I got to elementary school and about 17 years ago, they didn't have the power then. I was being choked by another kid which was a high schooler and literally almost died because of that but the bus driver wasn't on the bus at the time. Only thing the bus driver could've done when she got on was to break it up and to get someone leave that person there to go tell the vice principal. The authorities at school kicked him off the bus but still, the bus driver was powerless. In that part of Georgia, they saved try to save resources by having middle schoolers have their own bus and high schoolers and elementary schoolers have the same bus. This is also why they have video cameras behind the rear view mirrors. It's a pretty bad thing though not to allow the bus driver any power but also there's probably another reason. Down here where I live, the bus drivers are paid by the county even though they work for the schools. But it's because they're paid by the county and not by the state or anyone else that they're powerless.

We once had a bus driver that tried to change a route because the route that the county gave her was just a waste of time, gas, etc. She had to go 4 miles more just to pick up my sister at a certain school (yes, JUST my sister) instead of going to my home to pick her up. So, she changed the route on her own because she already tried with the school board but they said no. Another parent somehow found out, told on her and the bus driver got fired. She was one of the good ones around here and that's rare (like I said, that's here at least).

Just think of it like you're a low-grade employee at any other job. Not saying your low-grade just at the bottom of the ladder as in the chain-of-command. Employees can complain to their superiors all they want and the employee is right but will the superiors truly listen? No. Just have to deal with it. I know a couple employees that I'd like to fire if I had my way but I can't.

The best bet which usually doesn't work but sometimes it will is to go to a school board public meeting and bring up your case.

Chris F

Because the very litidgeous society we live in. Parents alway say "my little Johnny/Jane wouldn't do that."

Then when the school board/bus company install cameras in the bus and show them doing on DVD/tape, they scream "invasion of privacy".

Phil

Yeah...you're right...

BUT...say you kick a kid off the bus and he or she goes off and gets hit by a car...kidnapped...killed. You and the school system would be liable in a court of law.

morningstar6707

they do kick them off in some states. when i lived in PA. my son got kicked off the bus,in winter time, for defending himself from another student who was the bus bully,twice my sons'size. the week before that incident the bus driver kicked a kid off the bus for misbehaving.we lived out in the country and it was 12 miles to the school from home. the kid got hit by a semi truck and killed trying to walk or hitchhike to school.in the dead of winter.needless to say, when we went to court for my son. i explained to the judge that if my son could not get back on the bus,then he would not be going to school, as this was the only way for him to get there because we had no transportation at the time.i was not going to take a chance on something happening to my child as happened to the other child. now if you live in the city and the kids are kicked off the bus, i see no reason why they can't walk to school,after all , looking at some of the kids today,they might lose a little weight ,and get tired enough that they won't feel like going out and terrorizing the neighborhood.

sensible_man

They do here in Arkansas. Riding the bus is a privlege and you can be removed from this service. My kid got removed twice for 3 days because he was yelling.

cocoamoe

You should have that right . You are their driver and driving is serious when having a bus load of students.
You acting on the others behalf on a safe trip home. Not trouble makers . KICK EM OFF !

Wait you should not kick them off anywhere. Call back at school and have the parent come pick up the troubled child .
Leave the parents to deal with them then the school.

bungee

you can you just can't do it out in the middle of your route you have to do at the school or the students home then not pick them up the next day.

gravytrain

I drove a school bus for 6 years in central NC, and my mother still drives. She's been at it for 18 years now and planning to retire from the system. I want to point out to others that I'm sure you don't mean literally kicking them off the bus en-route, just anywhere, but rather suspending them from riding the bus (at least I hope that's what you mean). Anywho, I think drivers should have that right. Like someone said earlier, I know there are a few districts around the country that give their drivers that authority, and it should be that way everywhere. My problem when I drove was that the principles tapped the kids on the wrist when the driver reported them, told the kid not to do it again, and everything was supposed to be ok. It's difficult to get a kid suspended, no matter what they've done. I was lucky, I had a regular route with super-great kids (still miss them all these years later). However, when I was a substitute, I would have loved to had that ability and authority. It's just not right!!! Who else knows what kids need to be suspended better than the driver?? It's like someone else, said, the world is "lawsuit-happy" these days. I'm sure you've heard the saying, "...the superintendent is afraid of the school board, the school board is afraid of the principles, the principles are afraid of the teachers, the teachers are afraid of the parents, the parents are afraid of the kids, and the kids aren't afraid of anything..."

twhrider

In the corporation I drove for for 21 years (last year was IT) we could suspend kids. We couldn't kick them off enroute to or from, but we could sure deny them a ride. After all transportation is a priveledge, not a RIGHT. The TD always gave us the big talk at the beginning of the year that we had to make every attempt to go ahead and transport, because that was our job, but by golly....if they acted up bad enough that I felt like they needed a day off, they got it. That said, in all the years I drove, you could probably count on the fingers of both hands the number of kids I put off, and still have fingers left over....which was probably why they didn't give me much hassle when I turned in the paperwork to suspend a kid. I told my TD one day when he did try to hassle me about a particular suspension...."I'M not dealing with him tomorrow....either he's off, or I am....I'll just take a sick day tomorrow...but one of us ain't riding that bus." The suspension stood. But it is sad, and one reason why I hung it up....the whole lack of accountability. Kids get away with absolutely ridiculous behavior, and nothing gets done about it. You complain to the parents, and of course their little darling wouldn't do such a thing...

ROBT M

They kick kids off the bus if there behaving badly where i go. I also get abandoned at the school numerous times because im like 30 seconds late to get to the bus after school and they purposely drive off when they see me.

UCANTCME

BECAUSE WE LIVE IN A LAWSUIT WORLD TODAY AND IF YOU LOOK AT SOMEONE WRONG THEY MIGHT SUE YOU.

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