HENRICO COUNTY, Va. -- A Henrico County Schools bus driver said she and other drivers are noticing an increase in safety concerns on the bus, which the district said is supported by anecdotal data related to student behavior issues.
The district has seen an overall 24% increase in disciplinary incidents over the past five years. Driver Brenda Riddell, who has ten years of experience behind the wheel, said those behaviors are manifesting on buses in a variety of ways.
"Behavior on the school bus has gotten totally out of hand," she said. “It can be bullying, threatening the bus driver, threatening another student, harassment, cursing, forceful behavior to another student."
Riddell took her concerns to the Henrico County School Board during a meeting last week. She told board members and Superintendent Amy Cashwell that drivers are aware of what she considered to be a lack of consequences for children who misbehave.
“Accountability is taking ownership as a result of your behavior. Doesn’t seem like that’s a priority in Henrico County," Riddell said at the board meeting.
She then described how drivers typically handle behavioral concerns. She said drivers will first ask students to stop. If problems persist, they write a referral which is submitted to school administrators.
However, she said she has "no clue" what comes next.
“In some cases, we don’t even know if it’s read. The problem is, we don’t know. The only way we can find out is to meet with the principal, and most of the time, we’re not allowed to be told," Riddell said.
Asked about the process, a Henrico Schools spokesperson said school administrators "thoroughly review" all referrals to determine whether discipline is necessary. Sometimes, drivers are not aware of all of the circumstances found within an investigation.
Then students and families are notified of any resulting action.
"If it happens on the bus, sooner or later, it's going to happen in the school. I'm going to give you a tough example of that," Riddell said.
Riddell said that back in November, a driver was threatened by a student on the bus. She said that the driver then gave a written report of the threat to a supervisor, school administration, and police.
But Riddell said the student in question remained on the bus.
"When a bus driver is threatened, the red flag for everybody-- who's next?" Riddell said.
Riddell went on to say that two months after the threat was reported, a student brought a loaded gun to Holman Middle School on January 20. Right after that, Riddell's remarks to the school board were cut off due to a policy stating that every speaker gets three minutes at the podium.
The district is not confirming whether the student who allegedly threatened the driver was the same student who brought a gun to Holman.
However, a spokesperson said both incidents were handled separately in accordance with the student code of conduct and the district's safety protocols.
Bus drivers are typically only notified of disciplinary action if it impacts a student's ridership on the bus.
“Please listen to bus drivers," Riddell said.
A district spokesperson said bus drivers are required to attend student management training twice a year.
