FILE: EDC
STUDENT TRANSPORTATION SAFETY PROGRAM
The Avoyelles Parish School Board recognizes the responsibility of school bus operators and the need for bus operators to practice extreme caution in transporting children to and from school. Therefore, the School Board shall require the implementation, maintenance, and observance of a transportation safety program.
VIDEO EQUIPMENT ON SCHOOL BUSES
As a means to help ensure safety and proper conduct on School Board owned and/or contracted school buses, it shall be the policy of the School Board that video surveillance equipment be allowed and/or required when such equipment is requested and approved by the Supervisor of Transportation, and operated under rules and regulations established by the Superintendent.
Purposes for which the video equipment may be used are:
Monitoring behavior and conduct of students on the bus.
Providing evidence relative to adherence or non-adherence to policies of the School Board.
The purchase and installation of such equipment shall be the responsibility of the School Board for School Board owned buses, or of the contract operators for their buses. Ownership of the equipment, including the housing thereof, shall remain with the School Board or contract operator.
Strict adherence to laws and rules of confidentiality shall be maintained in the viewing of tapes and use of equipment to assure compliance with laws and regulations regarding the privacy rights of students and employees.
USE OF CELLULAR TELEPHONES
The School Board shall authorize the issuance of cellular telephones to all bus operators. The purpose of having phones on school buses is to improve the safety of students and employees. The intended use of these phones is for emergency use and not personal use. Therefore, the phones shall only be used in cases of an emergency affecting the safety of students and/or employees. In no case shall the phone be used for personal use.
No person shall engage in a call on a cellular telephone or similar device while driving a school bus. The use of cellular telephones by school bus operators may be authorized in an emergency situation involving:
An emergency system response operator, 911 safety dispatcher, or school administrator;
A hospital or emergency room;
A physician’s office or health clinic;
An ambulance or fire department rescue service;
A fire department, fire protection district, or volunteer fire department;
A law enforcement agency.
The Superintendent and/or Transportation Supervisor will determine consequences for misuse and/or mishandling of the bus phones and/or equipment, which shall include disciplinary action up to and including termination. A bus operator determined by the Superintendent or his/her designee to be guilty of using cellular phones while the bus is still running shall be suspended without pay for five (5) days for the first offense, and on the second offense, the bus operator shall be recommended for dismissal. After an investigation by the Superintendent which reveals any justification for use of the cell phone while the bus is running due to road conditions preventing the operator to pull over and stop, any penalty shall be rescinded and waived under such circumstances.
Revised: October, 2003
Revised: January, 2004
Revised: February, 2004
Revised: December, 2008
Ref: La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§32:289, 32:398, 32:871
Louisiana School Transportation Specifications and Procedures, Bulletin 119, §701, §909, §2903
Board minutes, 4-2-01, 5-7-01, 7-16-02, 8-19-03, 10-7-03, 11-4-03, 2-3-09, 7-7-09
Avoyelles Parish School Board