Washington School District making changes after viral video catches bus driver's outburst
A local school bus driver was caught on video screaming at kids as it was transporting students from a Washington County elementary school.
The video has garnered a lot of attention and reaction on social media, leading the school district to make changes.
The driver could be heard screaming, "Shut your mouths, all of you, [I'm] calling the police, they can take you home themselves."
Shared across social media dozens of times, the driver, taking a bus full of students from Washington Park Elementary School, 3rd-6th grades, the driver yelled at the students to shut up, called them morons, and much more. He works for the GG&C Transportation, which provides the buses and drivers for the Washington School District.
The superintendent is now reacting to what he's seen and what he's learned.
"What I've seen is the driver, obviously, got frustrated," said Superintendent George Lammay. "I'm not going to condone him calling the kid a name, because that's just not acceptable. At the same time, I understand his frustration. I've been talking with parents, and we're going to make some adjustments to support him and our other drivers."
Lammay said there'll be changes moving forward, including bus monitors on every bus for the rest of the year, but he also acknowledged ongoing challenges.
"There are people who would say some districts are more difficult to control in terms of the behavior of kids," he said. "The district has a lot of challenges. We're a high-poverty district, and in dealing with those things, sometimes our kids face a lot of things that other districts don't face."
Part of the video showed the driver daring the district to confront him over his actions.
"I just hope that people watching these broadcasts understand that we need to work together," Lammay said. "It troubles me that folks want to picket things and not understand that the driver was a little stressed, and certainly, understanding that's the case. Our kids sometimes push the limits a little bit."
The district said they hope to have a bus monitor on all buses beginning on Monday, with an emphasis on the one involved in the video.
