Published: August 27, 2008 09:01 am      

Officials clear up bus route confusion

Several Huntsville Independent School Distict students were misplaced Monday — the opening day of the 2008-09 school — and confusion concerning bus routes panicked parents.

“We transport about 3,200 kids a day,” HISD Assistant Superintendent John DeBrock said. “We have additional people at the dock to help children get on the right bus. Sometimes a mistake is made.”

A Scott Johnson Elementary School faculty member told Kristy Fouquet, mother of 5-year-old Jesilyn Knight, that her daughter was not lost, but misplaced.

“Misplaced, to me, is considered lost,” Fouquet said. “From 3:10-6 p.m. my baby girl was missing.”

According to DeBrock, policy dictates that someone is standing at the bus to write down the name of every child who boards.

If it is unknown what bus a student should get on, they contact the HISD transportation department, he said.

From campus, the buses go to the transportation department, or bus barn, unload, and the students then board their homebound buses.

If a student appears to be on the wrong bus or does not recognize the drop-off area, drivers are instructed to keep the student on the bus and return them to the dock once the route is through, DeBrock said.

All buses are equipped with two-way radios, and if a parent calls in reporting their child has not been dropped off at the designated stop, a call goes out to the bus asking if the child is still on board. However, this is not always possible.

“Unfortunately, there are a lot of dead areas in the county where we don’t get radio communication,” DeBrock said. “In that case, all we can do is wait until we can establish communication.”

The exact error or errors leading up to the incident at Scott Johnson Elementary remain unclear, but according to Fouquet, Knight was incorrectly tagged and boarded the wrong bus.

Fouquet became immediately fearful for her daughter’s safety, especially concerned that at her age she may have unknowingly gotten off at the wrong stop.

“Numerous things could have happened to her because no one knew where she was,” Fouquet said. “Once I found out my child had been put on the wrong bus my fear turned to anger.”

She then called police who spoke with her in the school parking lot before she drove to the transportation department, shortly after a Scott Johnson Elementary assistant principal left en route to the same location in search of related information.

According to Fouquet, while at the transportation department she was visibly upset when communicating with officials there, and at one point was told to “shut up,” by an employee.

After the altercation, the department called police for further assistance.

“It was complete chaos in that building,” Fouquet said, “Everyone was running around like a chicken with its head cut off.”

HISD transportation director James Ringo said any form of disciplinary action concerning the accused employee would be handled internally.

“Buses were running late yesterday, which is typical the first day of school,” DeBrock said. “Particularly at the first of the year, mistakes are made and we try to get those mistakes corrected as quickly as possible, while at the same time understanding the parents are upset.”

Knight went home with her mother after 6 p.m. that night, who claims that there were other parents at the bus barn who were also looking for their children.

This was also reported by Joe Rodriquez, whose 12-year-old son goes to Huntsville Intermediate and was also misplaced.

In an e-mail sent to Ringo, Rodriquez inquired as to why he did not attend the Huntsville Intermediate meet and greet event held on Aug. 21, and stated that his absence was “unacceptable” as he is a “professional man entrusted with the safety of our children.” Rodriquez expressed concern that accurate information is needed as is Ringo's ability to attend area meet and greets in order to better inform parents.

“We’re here everyday trying to get children to their homes,” Ringo said, then cited the large number of students who ride the bus, in addition to the possibility of “old addresses” and incorrect student tags as a few of the factors that could lead to problems within the bus system.