A bit of a vent- unexpected expense. Update

[daughtersrus]

My youngest DD is severely disabled. She is dependent on adults for all of her care and is in a wheelchair. She has a 1:1 para for the school bus and one at school. Our school district provides transportation and the staff to/from school. All of the students on the bus with the exception of my DD have autism. Before Christmas I was told by the driver that another student punched DD as he walked passed her. Luckily DD was not injured because she had a puffy winter coat on.

I called the transportation dept for our school district to review the video tape on the bus. We discussed a plan (1:1 would stand by DD when any of the students were getting on/off the bus to protect her).

Friday I get a call from our distinct office student service administrator. She said that another student ripped DD's glasses off her face and broke them. She assured me that DD was not injured. They refuse to allow us to review the video because doing so will violate the privacy rights of the other students. They said that the para was by DD but turned around to look outside when the student walked past DD.

I spent most of Friday going back and forth with the district. Replacement cost for DD's glasses is almost $500. Insurance will not pay because we just got them and only have coverage every 2 years.

The most frustrating part is that they don't seem to see this as a serious safety concern. They know that DD is blind in one eye and if anything were to happen to her good eye should be permanently blind. I've gone through a million senerios in my head ...what is they grabbed her wrist and broke it, what if she gets poked in the eye, what is she gets hit...

After my insistence they finally agreed to assign a different 1:1 for the bus.

DD's ophthalmologist is livid! Without us asking, she insists on writing a detailed letter to our superintendent and school board to explain how serious this is. She even came into her office Saturday to find a frame that DD's lenses will fit in while they order a new frame for her.

I guess that I'm just frustrated that this added expense is put on us. To make matters worse, DD was just diagnosed with glaucoma the day before and we have a ton of expenses coming in for the hospital and doctors for the exam they had to do under sedation.

I'm not going to give up trying to get the school district to pay for the glasses. They have a video showing that the 1:1 was not doing her job to watch and protect DD.

 

[Tink9295]

Another option rather than having a 1:1 para on the bus is to insist that the violent child be put on a separate bus/van or have your child put on one. I am a special ed para. with over 10 years of experience. I can honestly say that we cannot protect a child 100% of the time as hard as we try. A violent child or even a child that may be hurt another unintentionally should be riding a separate bus. But unless you say something and I mean be an insistent pain in the butt, the district will take the less costly route by keeping everyone on the same bus. This was a second incident. There could have been a serious injury and there was damage done to her glasses.

 

[worm761]

Another option rather than having a 1:1 para on the bus is to insist that the violent child be put on a separate bus/van or have your child put on one. I am a special ed para. with over 10 years of experience. I can honestly say that we cannot protect a child 100% of the time as hard as we try. A violent child or even a child that may be hurt another unintentionally should be riding a separate bus. But unless you say something and I mean be an insistent pain in the butt, the district will take the less costly route by keeping everyone on the same bus. This was a second incident. There could have been a serious injury and there was damage done to her glasses.

This is good advice.

And while I am not sue happy person.... I would lawyer up for the safety of my child. A lawyer will help you get much farther with the school than just a parent they think they don't have to listen too.

 

[daughtersrus]

Another option rather than having a 1:1 para on the bus is to insist that the violent child be put on a separate bus/van or have your child put on one. I am a special ed para. with over 10 years of experience. I can honestly say that we cannot protect a child 100% of the time as hard as we try. A violent child or even a child that may be hurt another unintentionally should be riding a separate bus. But unless you say something and I mean be an insistent pain in the butt, the district will take the less costly route by keeping everyone on the same bus. This was a second incident. There could have been a serious injury and there was damage done to her glasses.

I should clarify. The student that punched DD is not the same one that took her glasses off and broke them.

I did ask that they put her on a different bus. They have 4 going to the school (out of district placement about 35 miles from our house) but I think that they're too lazy to try and redo all of the routes.

My two older DD's are SpEd teacher (one BD and the other autism). They both said that in their experience, often times even children with autism can tell who is the weakest and pick on them.

Either way, the 1:1 was looking out the window instead of watching DD as the other students got off the bus.

This is good advice.

And while I am not sue happy person.... I would lawyer up for the safety of my child. A lawyer will help you get much farther with the school than just a parent they think they don't have to listen too.

We may have to go that route again.

9 1/2 years ago DD's femur was broken by an improperly trained para. Our health insurance refused pay ($30,000+) for the medical bills because they felt school was responsible. School Dist refused to pay because they said that they are immune to liability due to a tort immunity act. In the end, we were able to prove that they knew that what they were doing/not doing could injure DD. We ended up recovering the medical expenses and a very small amount for DD. They lawyer ended up with twice what DD got. That is the reason that she's in a private out of district school.

 

[Luv Bunnies]

I'm also a special ed assistant with 13 years experience. We've had situations where certain kids could not safely come into contact on the bus. These were usually kids from different classes that would not be together during the day. What we've done in the past is strategically assign seats on the bus. If your DD rides the bus in her wheelchair, I would assume her position on the bus is usually the same. If she's in the back, for example, we would have the more aggressive kids board after her and sit in the front. The aide would block the aisle behind them as they board to make sure they can't get any further down the aisle.

For the bus ride, the aide would position herself between your DD and the other kids. If they happen to get up and come down the aisle, she can easily use her arm or leg to stop their progression and then guide them back to their seats. Our special ed buses also have seat belts. Some have a harness system that we use for some kids (with the permission of the parent). It keeps the kids safely in their seats and must be fastened and unfastened by an adult, much like a car seat. We use them for everyone's safety. If a child gets out of his/her seat, the bus driver has to stop the bus until the child is safely seated.

It's a bummer that the district won't take responsibility for the broken glasses. It sounds like the bus procedures need to be reviewed and modified. There's no reason for the aggressive kids to even walk by your DD. They should be boarded before or after her to avoid any chance for contact. If the school agrees to modify the bus procedure, be sure to get it in writing and added to her IEP (i.e. an addendum saying she is boarded first/last with the supervision of an aide). If it's in writing, you have more leverage if the plan isn't followed in the future. Good luck!

 

[erincon23]

It may be a different situation because of the issues of the children, but I'd be trying to find out which child it was and go after their parents to make them pay for the glasses. When DS was in 7th or 8th, he was being badly bullied at school, and one day a student pulled DS's glasses off his face and threw them on the floor, and one lens was lost and had to be replaced. DS didn't know the kid, couldn't see him well enough to identify him, but the school said if DS could identify him, that we should sue the parents (or talk to them, but frequently the parents won't do anything about it) and that the school had no responsibility. (We never did find out who was responsible.)

 

[LSmith]

Your first concern should be for the physical welfare of your daughter.

There would be no chance whatsoever my child would be getting back on that bus unless I got a guarantee that she would not be harmed again.

 

[pinoke]

How old are the children? I think this matters when chiming in...

 

[kirstenb1]

I'm also a special ed assistant with 13 years experience. We've had situations where certain kids could not safely come into contact on the bus. These were usually kids from different classes that would not be together during the day. What we've done in the past is strategically assign seats on the bus. If your DD rides the bus in her wheelchair, I would assume her position on the bus is usually the same. If she's in the back, for example, we would have the more aggressive kids board after her and sit in the front. The aide would block the aisle behind them as they board to make sure they can't get any further down the aisle.

For the bus ride, the aide would position herself between your DD and the other kids. If they happen to get up and come down the aisle, she can easily use her arm or leg to stop their progression and then guide them back to their seats. Our special ed buses also have seat belts. Some have a harness system that we use for some kids (with the permission of the parent). It keeps the kids safely in their seats and must be fastened and unfastened by an adult, much like a car seat. We use them for everyone's safety. If a child gets out of his/her seat, the bus driver has to stop the bus until the child is safely seated.

It's a bummer that the district won't take responsibility for the broken glasses. It sounds like the bus procedures need to be reviewed and modified. There's no reason for the aggressive kids to even walk by your DD. They should be boarded before or after her to avoid any chance for contact. If the school agrees to modify the bus procedure, be sure to get it in writing and added to her IEP (i.e. an addendum saying she is boarded first/last with the supervision of an aide). If it's in writing, you have more leverage if the plan isn't followed in the future. Good luck!

This sounds like good advice. Around here, special ed kids sometimes ride alone in the back seat of a county car, if they pose any type of physical risk to other kids, so that may be another option to explore for the kids harassing your dd. I'm sorry, too about the glasses, $500 is a lot of money.

 

[akcire]

My youngest DD is severely disabled. She is dependent on adults for all of her care and is in a wheelchair. She has a 1:1 para for the school bus and one at school. Our school district provides transportation and the staff to/from school. All of the students on the bus with the exception of my DD have autism. Before Christmas I was told by the driver that another student punched DD as he walked passed her. Luckily DD was not injured because she had a puffy winter coat on.

I called the transportation dept for our school district to review the video tape on the bus. We discussed a plan (1:1 would stand by DD when any of the students were getting on/off the bus to protect her).

Friday I get a call from our distinct office student service administrator. She said that another student ripped DD's glasses off her face and broke them. She assured me that DD was not injured. They refuse to allow us to review the video because doing so will violate the privacy rights of the other students. They said that the para was by DD but turned around to look outside when the student walked past DD.

I spent most of Friday going back and forth with the district. Replacement cost for DD's glasses is almost $500. Insurance will not pay because we just got them and only have coverage every 2 years.

The most frustrating part is that they don't seem to see this as a serious safety concern. They know that DD is blind in one eye and if anything were to happen to her good eye should be permanently blind. I've gone through a million senerios in my head ...what is they grabbed her wrist and broke it, what if she gets poked in the eye, what is she gets hit...

After my insistence they finally agreed to assign a different 1:1 for the bus.

DD's ophthalmologist is livid! Without us asking, she insists on writing a detailed letter to our superintendent and school board to explain how serious this is. She even came into her office Saturday to find a frame that DD's lenses will fit in while they order a new frame for her.

I guess that I'm just frustrated that this added expense is put on us. To make matters worse, DD was just diagnosed with glaucoma the day before and we have a ton of expenses coming in for the hospital and doctors for the exam they had to do under sedation.

I'm not going to give up trying to get the school district to pay for the glasses. They have a video showing that the 1:1 was not doing her job to watch and protect DD.

First I'd probably take the cost of the glasses up with the school bus company. If it is the one I think it is, they are the actual employers of the assistants on the bus in addition to the bus drivers. It'd make a good story for the Herald.

Second, if this doesn't get you any where one of the best lawyers disability advocates in the state lives right near you in White Eagle. She also teaches at Northern's law school. If you want her contact info PM me and I will look for it.

Good luck this kind of crap sucks

 

[Judique]

My youngest DD is severely disabled. She is dependent on adults for all of her care and is in a wheelchair. She has a 1:1 para for the school bus and one at school. Our school district provides transportation and the staff to/from school. All of the students on the bus with the exception of my DD have autism. Before Christmas I was told by the driver that another student punched DD as he walked passed her. Luckily DD was not injured because she had a puffy winter coat on.

I called the transportation dept for our school district to review the video tape on the bus. We discussed a plan (1:1 would stand by DD when any of the students were getting on/off the bus to protect her).

Friday I get a call from our distinct office student service administrator. She said that another student ripped DD's glasses off her face and broke them. She assured me that DD was not injured. They refuse to allow us to review the video because doing so will violate the privacy rights of the other students. They said that the para was by DD but turned around to look outside when the student walked past DD.

I spent most of Friday going back and forth with the district. Replacement cost for DD's glasses is almost $500. Insurance will not pay because we just got them and only have coverage every 2 years.

The most frustrating part is that they don't seem to see this as a serious safety concern. They know that DD is blind in one eye and if anything were to happen to her good eye should be permanently blind. I've gone through a million senerios in my head ...what is they grabbed her wrist and broke it, what if she gets poked in the eye, what is she gets hit...

After my insistence they finally agreed to assign a different 1:1 for the bus.

DD's ophthalmologist is livid! Without us asking, she insists on writing a detailed letter to our superintendent and school board to explain how serious this is. She even came into her office Saturday to find a frame that DD's lenses will fit in while they order a new frame for her.

I guess that I'm just frustrated that this added expense is put on us. To make matters worse, DD was just diagnosed with glaucoma the day before and we have a ton of expenses coming in for the hospital and doctors for the exam they had to do under sedation.

I'm not going to give up trying to get the school district to pay for the glasses. They have a video showing that the 1:1 was not doing her job to watch and protect DD.

Were the glasses broken in school or on the school bus?

I would request the paperwork to file a claim. I wouldn't go round and round with anyone. Most districts carry insurance, or may be self insured for these incidents. If they deny your claim, sue them in small claims. $500 would not be worth a lawyer. The para turned around, ie wasn't paying attention when this happened, you stated they told you that. In effect they admitted that they were negligent in their supervision and care of your child.

 

[Theaberdeenkid]

Well a bit off the main issue.

Zennioptical.com is a site to get inexpensive glasses. I've recently bought spiderman glasses for my son and a replacement pair for me wife ($23 & $14 respectively shipped)

 

[Lamping3]

My sister was in a similar situation except it was my nephew that did the glasses breaking. When my nephew was in preschool (he is now 19) there was a little girl that would always pick on him. In one instance after she hit him another boy in her class grabbed her and told Alex to grab her glasses. He did and threw them on the floor and stomped on them. Once my sister found out she was more than willing to pay for half of the replacement glasses along with the other boys parents (the boy that held her and prodded Alex along). Did the school contact the child who broke the glasses parents? I would say as a parent myself I would be more than willing to pay the cost to repair something my kid broke. Even if they won't give you the kids identity they should let the parents know of the incident. If the parent cares at all they should contact you themselves to pay for the damage.

 

[lucyem]

Personally for $500 glasses I would be calling the police and filing a report with them.

 

[ceecee]

Wouldn't the boy who purposely broke her glasses be responsible? Maybe the howmeowner's ins plan will pay?

 

[daughtersrus]

How old are the children? I think this matters when chiming in...

I'm not sure the age matters. My DD as well as the other children on the bus are all disabled.

First I'd probably take the cost of the glasses up with the school bus company. If it is the one I think it is, they are the actual employers of the assistants on the bus in addition to the bus drivers. It'd make a good story for the Herald.b

Second, if this doesn't get you any where one of the best lawyers disability advocates in the state lives right near you in White Eagle. She also teaches at Northern's law school. If you want her contact info PM me and I will look for it.

Good luck this kind of crap sucks

Our school district owns and operates all of the buses. The drivers and paras are all school district employes. I'll send you a PM.

Were the glasses broken in school or on the school bus?

They were broken on the bus. The student gabbed them off of DD's face as he walked passed her getting off the bus at the school. The staff on the bus are employees of our local school district.

Well a bit off the main issue.

Zennioptical.com is a site to get inexpensive glasses. I've recently bought spiderman glasses for my son and a replacement pair for me wife ($23 & $14 respectively shipped)

I've ordered from Zenni myself but DD's are more complicated. She had cataract surgery years ago so she needs polycarbonate bifocal lenses ( hard to find frames on Zenni to fit bifocals) with transition tinting. She also has hearing aides that go over her ears (thankfully they weren't damaged ($5,000 not covered by insurance) so she needs the temples to wrap around her ears similar to the old aviator style.

Wouldn't the boy who purposely broke her glasses be responsible? Maybe the howmeowner's ins plan will pay?

From what I've been told, he has pretty severe autism.

 

[supersnoop]

File a police report for the glasses. The police can pull the video. The parents of the boy who broke them would be held responsible. Their homeowners insurance may cover the cost, but that's not your problem to worry about.

 

[manning]

Don't know if this would be successful. My old negotiation days are kicking in.

Give them several choices.

1. Identify the kid so you can recover the cost of glasses

2. The child was in your jurisdiction and owe us for the glasses

3 refuse to do either and you will go to court resulting in them paying for glasses and court cost.

If they were smart they would take the cheapest way out.

Wonder if small claims court could be used here.

 

[manning]

Is there a possibility of a police report?

 

[sarah4770]

My youngest DD is severely disabled. She is dependent on adults for all of her care and is in a wheelchair. She has a 1:1 para for the school bus and one at school. Our school district provides transportation and the staff to/from school. All of the students on the bus with the exception of my DD have autism. Before Christmas I was told by the driver that another student punched DD as he walked passed her. Luckily DD was not injured because she had a puffy winter coat on.

I called the transportation dept for our school district to review the video tape on the bus. We discussed a plan (1:1 would stand by DD when any of the students were getting on/off the bus to protect her).

Friday I get a call from our distinct office student service administrator. She said that another student ripped DD's glasses off her face and broke them. She assured me that DD was not injured. They refuse to allow us to review the video because doing so will violate the privacy rights of the other students. They said that the para was by DD but turned around to look outside when the student walked past DD.

I spent most of Friday going back and forth with the district. Replacement cost for DD's glasses is almost $500. Insurance will not pay because we just got them and only have coverage every 2 years.

The most frustrating part is that they don't seem to see this as a serious safety concern. They know that DD is blind in one eye and if anything were to happen to her good eye should be permanently blind. I've gone through a million senerios in my head ...what is they grabbed her wrist and broke it, what if she gets poked in the eye, what is she gets hit...

After my insistence they finally agreed to assign a different 1:1 for the bus.

DD's ophthalmologist is livid! Without us asking, she insists on writing a detailed letter to our superintendent and school board to explain how serious this is. She even came into her office Saturday to find a frame that DD's lenses will fit in while they order a new frame for her.

I guess that I'm just frustrated that this added expense is put on us. To make matters worse, DD was just diagnosed with glaucoma the day before and we have a ton of expenses coming in for the hospital and doctors for the exam they had to do under sedation.

I'm not going to give up trying to get the school district to pay for the glasses. They have a video showing that the 1:1 was not doing her job to watch and protect DD.

Try not to place too much blame on the para. it is like being a parent... sometimes you can't be everywhere at one time... sometimes you look away for a minute and something happens.
I think the issue is one of allowing violent children on the bus with your daughter... If this is the second incident within a short time insist on other transportation arrangements, either for them or your daughter. I hope that the school does make good for her glasses. They are aware a problem exists, now they have to make it right.