Special Education Transportation Question

[MightyMom]

My DS8 has cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair.

He rides the bus to and from school. It is considered a "special ed" bus and only children with special needs ride on that bus.

While my son is physically disabled, he is extremely bright and functions all day in a regular ed class with minimal assistance.

For two weeks during the school year the children are taken to a neighboring high school for a swimming class.

The children are taken to the high school via the school bus.

Yesterday was the first day and all the children in my son's class rode on the bus with him.

Today I was notified that the "regular ed" students were not allowed to ride on the "special ed" bus. Two buses would be sent..... one for my son.... and the other for the 20 other children in his class.

I was not given an explaination. I've been calling the transportation supervisor and I've yet to receive a phone call from him.

I am livid and I don't understand the reasoning.

Can ya'll give me some feedback as to why this might be necessary and what I can do to fix it????

 

[tw1nsmom]

Does your DS require some physical accommodation that he can't get on the bigger bus? Were they putting all 20 kids on the smaller "Special Ed" bus? If they did that, maybe they were over their limit on how many kids can fit on the smaller bus. Maybe they feel that if they don't transport your DS in the specially equipped bus they wouldn't be following the letter of the IEP.

Now having said all that, I would be upset too if it were my DS. If your DS doesn't need equipment or help that can only be provided on the special ed bus I see no reason why he couldn't be on the regular bus. If he does need the help and all his classmates safely fit on his bus, I also see no reason why it couldn't be handled that way.

If you don't get a satisfactory response to your calls, call an emergency IEP meeting. Unless it's absolutely necessary for reasons that aren't apparent to me, I would insist that the transportation be changed. You may need to call the superintendent on this one. In our district he would be the only person directly over the head of transportation.

 

[Talking Hands]

A regular bus would not have the tiedowns needed to handle the wheelchair so the child needs to be in a special needs bus but I can see no reason non-disabled children could not be on the bus as well unless they are over the capacity limit. I know we do have special ed kids in wheelchairs and regular ed kids on the same bus as long as it is equipped for wheelchairs.
In fact, I believe there will be several so called special needs seniors travelling with our group to Grad Night later this month. One is probably our valvictorian(sp) who is wheelchair dependent and very independent.

 

[MightyMom]

Does your DS require some physical accommodation that he can't get on the bigger bus? Were they putting all 20 kids on the smaller "Special Ed" bus? .

Yes, my son requires wheelchair tie downs which are not available on a larger bus.... because of this he would need a wheelchair accessible bus.

All 20 of the other children as well as two adults (and of course the bus driver) fit comfortably and safely on the smaller bus.

It still makes no sense to me.

 

[MightyMom]

In fact, I believe there will be several so called special needs seniors travelling with our group to Grad Night later this month. One is probably our valvictorian(sp) who is wheelchair dependent and very independent.

I think half of the kids on the "regular ed" bus have needs that are more "special" than my sons! I really just hate that this kind of stupidy still exists in our culture.

 

[SandrainNC]

I know the bus that my son's class uses for field trips is a large bus with a chair lift. Not the smaller size bus. Definitely everybody would fit on there. All of the children who do not have wheelchairs ride in that bus for the trips up front in the regular seats. That is kind of weird.

Sandra

 

[scottsod]

hi

in nj my son who has cp and uses a wc only for school trips
they get 2 busses 1 large for the class 1 "short" for my son with a wc lift
my sons teacher always sends 1 or 2 kids with my son and his aid on his bus

i would guess that when all the kids went on the wc bus and the big bus was empty and maybe returned to the depot they got upset and it could even be some bus driver union thing they have rules # of kids on a bus # of bus for a trip etc etc u know they have to be that yellow by law lol

i would have sent 1/2 the class on your sons bus so transport wouldnt be in the loop

good luck
scott

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

Speaking as a special ed teacher, I can tell you that's absurd and offensive.

Your child has a federally guaranteed right to education in the "Least Restrictive Environment" for all of his education. Riding the school bus to the field trip is definitely part of his education, and so LRE needs to apply there too. I would call and ask to talk to someone high up in Special Ed. and use those specific words "My child's right to the Least Restrictive Environment was violated, and I'd like to convene and IEP meeting to make sure that it doesn't happen again". Hopefully they'll realize the error of their ways and make the change without you having to meet, however if they don't you could look around for a pro bonon attorney who specializes in disability advocacy. If you were local I could tell you who to call, but I suspect you're out of state for me.

Good luck!

 

[bookwormde]

Yes this is a clear violation of LRE. When you talk to the district remember that LRE is not governed by the currently available "facilities" configuration (see part 300 appendix A of IDEA) so the fact that they do not have the proper bus configuration for your child to receive LRE does not remove their regulatory requirement to supply it. The obvious solution would have been to split the class between the busses. I bet they change that rule instantly. While a grayer area your son’s mode of transportation (not integrated with his other classmates) to school may also be pushing the limits of LRE. In most cases LRE applies to the school experience from the time the school takes charge of your child to the time they return him to you.

While I am sure you are upset, it is sometimes better to approach the issue as if it we an "oversight" on their part and to educate them about the requirements than a more confrontational approach, save that for if they are "hard headed".

bookwormde

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

One more thought. As I mentioned I'd definitely take this to the district level, using the specific language of LRE. In addition, though I'd speak to his teacher directly. As a teacher I'd find it pretty intimidating to know that one of my parents was going over my head with a complaint. Telling her you know it isn't her decision and that the reason why you're going up the chain of command is that you want to deal with the person who is responsible, will go along way to preserving that relationship. It may also be that she feels comfortable "sneaking" some of your son's close friends onto his bus as a temporary solution.

 

[BeckyScott]

Our district had specific rules regarding this- I don't know where the rules came from though.

Justin was on a "special" bus for preschool, and I had asked about "typical" kids riding the same bus, specifically his brother. Later on, when they were both at the same school, it made sense to me just to put his brother on the same bus.

Nope. Apparantly they would each have their own bus.

So I drive them.

 

[1stluvispooh]

I can understand your feelings. My DD rides the special needs bus. She has ASD and would have a hard time without seat belts and or kids not following the rules. Fortunately for a field trip she does go on the bus with the other kids. (She "virtually" buckles herself in and her teacher makes sure her BFF is sitting next to her) I have a hard time with this big special needs bus driving all over town and it only has 3 kids riding it. What a waste!

 

[MightyMom]

After several attempts to speak the the director of transportation, I finally just sat down and wrote a short letter detailing the incident. I then said I felt my son's right to a LRE was violated and I expected him to take immediate action to ensure this never happened again.

I faxed the letter yesterday morning. Finally at 4pm, after not receiving any feedback, I called his office again. The receptionist said he was not in.... so I told her to leave him a message. The message said, "Since I believe this situation requires immediate attention and I've been unable to contact you in the last 48 hours, I feel I have no choice but to take this matter to the superintentant."

Within 5 minutes he called me back.

He apologized profusely and promised this would never happen again.

I guess I'll just have to wait and see. DS will get on the bus at 1:30 pm today to go swimming...... I hope his peers will be on the same bus with him.

 

[Schmeck]

Could it be that some ignorant parents complained about their children being on a bus used for special education? You know, that horrible designation of 'the short bus'? I hate that! Although, we even have prejudice and stereotyping among our special education population - I had a long talk with a student with disabilities the other day about the limitations another student has and how we need to accept all people, of all abilities...