Tuesday we had the beginning of a fairly big snowstorm. School was still on. We waited for the bus, and waited and waited. We stand in our living room at the front window, no way a bus is going to go by without us seeing.
Kept calling the bus company, were told they are still coming be patient. Meanwhile, we saw a bus that looked like Jackson's bus drive right by without stopping. I figured since our regular driver has been out, the sub must have just missed our house. He will either back up or go around the block...but no.
At 9:10 (school starts at 9) we call the school. The lady I talked to said she isn't sure what happened. She put me on hold to call the aid to see what happened. The aid told her that they had waited outside our house for 5 minutes and then left when no one came out.
Well, there is just no way that is true! We live on a narrow one-way street. It was not plowed yet that morning so no way cars could get by a bus stopped for 5 minutes. Chicago drivers are not known for their patience...they would be honking like crazy. Plus the fact that we were right there watching the whole time.
As you know, Jackson is nonverbal, can barely move, wheelchair-bound, frequently vomits especially in an upright position. Now I am very upset that I have to hand my very disabled child over to this person who I know to have told a lie. Not that I think she would intentionally harm him, but he does need someone to keep a close eye on him and he has no way to tell me if something bad happened on the bus or not.
Anyway, Jackson missed school that day because by the time I could have driven him there myself there would have been only about an hour left of school before he had to get on the bus to go home. He loves school too.
So Wednesday bus service was cancelled due to snow, but I had already decided that I wasn't going to put him on the bus anyway. So I drove him to school and then went to talk to the principal about what happened. He said that he has known this aid for 15 years and would feel comfortable leaving his kids with her. Yeah, but his kids can walk and talk and tell someone if something happens and don't have chronic health issues and need constant supervision. He said he can't switch the buses around. He said he would talk to the aid to get her side of the story the next day (she wasn't in that day) and call me to let me know what she said.
Thursday, I drive him to school again but he takes the bus home because it's a different aid on the way home. I hear from the principal that morning. He says that she says that the bus was out there waiting, maybe not a full 5 minutes but she said they were definitely there. He said he would like it if I could put Jackson on the bus tomorrow and talk with the aid. I don't like that solution very much but OK, I will talk to the aid myself.
Friday when the bus gets here (we see it right away from the living room window...go figure!)we go out to talk to the aid as we put Jackson on the bus. I wrote down my phone number on a piece of paper so she can call me next time the bus is "waiting for 5 minutes" and we don't come out or when the bus is excessively late. But she is totally sullen and has a serious attitude. She just goes on and on about how she has worked there 20 years and would never harm a child, bla bla bla. Ok, lady...I really do not give a s*** about how long you have worked there...are you going to use this phone number the next time you are "waiting" for us or not?(she is always talking on her cell when they pull up so I know she has one) She said she would, but she couldn't call us when the bus was late because she waits for the bus herself (ummm, so when you actually get on the bus maybe you could call us?)and we have a substitute driver so there might be a different driver each day.
The driver who was there said at first that it could have been a different Alltown bus we saw drive by (no, only one Alltown bus goes down our street, the rest are Falcon buses). Then he changed his story and said we should have called the bus company and they can call him and tell him to go back. (We did call the bus company 3 times and were told each time that they were still on their way).
When the bus arrived home on Friday afternoon, the afternoon aid and bus driver were surly toward me too.
I am not satisfied with the way this was handled at all by the school. The principal did nothing to make sure the bus would not leave Jackson behind again. The aid made it all about her, when it should be about getting Jackson to school when he should be at school.
Unfortunately, we feel that it would be best if I drive Jackson to and from school at least for the time being.
