Letter to the Editor
After-school policies
Published Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Digg
delicious
Facebook
Mixx
Reddit
Stumble It!Nov. 14, 2008
To the editor:
I am a military wife with a deployed husband. My two youngest children attend a local elementary school, which offers a once a week afterschool program for children of deployed parents. Both my first-grader and my fourth-grader participate in this program. Imagine my panic when I went to pick them up on Wednesday afternoon, a few minutes before 5, and found that my youngest child was not there. The school had mistakenly let my 6-year-old child get on the bus and be dropped off at home while no one was home.
What shocked me the most was the fact that nobody thought it was strange that she hadn’t shown up for the afterschool program even when my older child pointed out that she was supposed to be there. Thanks to the attentiveness of some truly amazing neighbors, my daughter was safe and sound for the entire hour between getting off the bus and my arrival at home.
I called the school immediately and spoke with the principal who was as horrified as I was that this had happened. He called me Thursday morning to let me know that the school policies had been changed to immediately correct the problem and I’m happy with his solutions.
Going beyond the immediate solution here, I think there should be a district-wide policy regarding proper procedures for maintaining accountability of our students during school-sponsored afterschool programs so that this never happens again.
In the meantime, I would suggest that all parents check with their children’s schools to find out if they have adequate safeguards in place to enable them to keep track of all students involved in afterschool programs.
Also, please make sure your children have an emergency plan in place and know what to do if they arrive at home and can’t get in. I shudder to think of the million different ways that this situation could have ended in tragedy. This time, disaster was averted. Let’s try to make sure there’s never a next time for any student.
Community Discussion
Newsminer.com doesn't necessarily condone the comments here, nor does it review every post. Read our full user's agreement.
Finally! A sensible letter that has nothing to do with the political scene, and its cast of usual suspects.
Very well written letter Rachel.
And you've got plenty of cause for concern.
Glad to hear everything eventually turned out okay!
Didnt they close a daycare last year for doing the same thing under different circumstances?
I am upset hearing that, it is one thing for your child to get on the bus but when your other daughter said something and no one reacted? WHAT? That person needs to be pulled aside and have some serious explaining done.
The manner in which the public is made aware of late school buses is a disgrace. On more than one occasion, I have called one of the grandson's school to see if the bus was late and they had no information, but when the bus company was called they stated it was 45 minutes late. I often wondered what about the children who's parents had already left for work and where standing in the cold waiting and wondering about their school bus. There seems to be no coordination between the school and the bus system. Seems to me a group of educators could come up with a system that insures communication between the bus, school, and parents.
I can't say this was the schools fault for letting your child get on the bus, That was simply your child forgetting about the after school program that day. It happens. My daughter forgot about hers on occassion and sometimes simply did not want to go.
What is the schools fault was the fact that your other child told them the other sibling was suppose to be there. When that happened the school should have been on it!! In these temperatures anything could happen and the person that knew your child was suppose to be there should be held accountable. Good thing it wasn't my child because there would be an after school program teacher that wouldn't look forward to seeing me ever again!
You should put a note on your child's backpack reminding her as to when her aftre school class is. I would remind my child in the morning & she would still forget.
I find it interesting that sherry29 stated it was not the schools fault for letting the child get on the bus. I am sure this parent did what she could to remind the children what day it was since it is only one day a week. It was a 6 year old child and in the schools my child has attended - there was a strict policy on who was a bus rider and who was not. Also there is a policy of who is picked up by the parents and who is allowed to walk home unattended. These policies have been strict in the kindergarter AND 1st grade classrooms, I am not sure what school your 6 year old child attended, but I know that the teachers are just as concerned about the younger child as the parents.My experience has been the children who are being picked or sent to the after school program are made to stay in the classroom until the parents come or the teacher verifies where the child is suppose to be. Also, the after school programs KNOW who are suppose to be in the program that day. My experience has been I can TRUST the school to ensure my child is safe as well as the after school program. But it is coming down to the times we are in and the quality of the employee and work ethics are not at the high standard it use to be.
IN this case, it is clear there was a mix up on the days ALSO it was the attendant who did not take the older siblings concern as a priority. IN ADDITION, even if the 6 year old remembered while he/she was on the school bus - she would not have been allowed off the bus to go back into the school. Once the children are on the bus they are not allowed off.
So sherry29, remember this was a 6 year old child. Even if you were to put a note on the child - it depends on the child if they will keep it there. With my son, he would get caught up in the after school rush and excitment - no note would do him good. Also with all the winter gear and back packs - the reality of it staying with a 6 year old is 50/50.
The older sibling knew where they were suppose to be and most likely immediately let the after school program KNOW what happened and at that point - it was the program's responsibility to track down the child and call the parent.
"I can't say this was the schools fault for letting your child get on the bus, That was simply your child forgetting about the after school program that day."
SHE'S SIX YEARS OLD, Sheery29. SIX!
So, yes, emphatically YES! It was the school's fault. 100%. Pure and simple. I can't even believe you would think otherwise.
Rachel, I'm so happy that your child was taken care of by your neighbors. While it's sad that a crisis such as this forces school officials to review their policies, at least the outcome wasn't as bad as it could have been.
Rachel-Thank you for your letter. It is refreshing to see someone send such a letter to the editor. You did exactly what I would have done and reported it in much the same way that I would have. It is refreshing to see that there are reasonable and understanding people in this town still, even if temporarily so.
I am so glad that your neighbors did what good neighbors would do. I am sure it was a warm feeling to know that you live amongst good people in your moment of fear.
Hopefully by your rational handling of the situation another Mother or Father will not have to go through a similar experience at the school.
Rachel-Thank you for your letter. It is refreshing to read a letter from a reasonable and understanding person for a change.
I am so glad that your neighbors did what good neighbors would do. I am sure it was a warm feeling to know that you live amongst good people in your moment of fear, concern, and anger.
Hopefully by your rational handling of the situation another Mother or Father will not have to go through a similar experience at the school.
My daughters, both 13, attend NPM's, after school program. The after school coordinator is VERY strict. She makes sure all the bus kids are in the bus line, and all the pick up kids are SIGNED out by the parent or other acceptable party. Of course, my kids are older, and if a mistake like that ever happened, I think they are old enough to handle a situation like that. Their only problem, is forgetting house keys, but luckily little brother always has his.
When my children were young we put a combination lock on our front door so they could never be locked out. Although I did not want them home alone, I would rather have them alone in the house than alone in the cold. I am glad this situation worked out the way it did, this could have had a very sad ending.
Thank you, thank you, thank you, for those who responded accordingly to Sherry29. This woman (Rachel) is a very dear friend of mine, and I know her parenting style and habits extremely well. I can assure any and all readers that she did everything that any well intentioned and responsible parent would do, and then went the extra mile just to be sure! That is just the type of mother she is! If I had more time, I would love to say what is truly on my mind to Sherry29, however, there are restrictions on here...so I will instead just ask, is ignorance truly bliss? If so, happy living lady!
I remember one time my daughter didnt come home from school when she was supposed too, and I cant desribe all the emotion and thoughts that go running through your head.....turns out, my husband forgot to tell me she had gone to her friends house after school, oops.
It was thankful that nothing horrible became of the child, however this should make all parent look at the bigger picture. There were multiple of factors that created this issue and/or the late bus issue.
1. The parent- sorry but my question is why did the parent not have a back up plan in place in the first place. As soon as I move to a new station I make contact with the neighbors with similar aged children to make arrangements for just-in-case issues like this. ALL PARENTS SHOULD HAVE BACK-UP ARRANGEMENTS FOR ALL SCHOOL-AGED CHILDREN.
2. The School- should have listened and investigated the siblings claim. Should ALWAYS side on caution.
3. (concerning late buses) The Bus System- in this extreme environment, clearily there needs to be a better system. If children are already waiting for the bus and its going to be 45 minutes-thats unacceptable. There needs to be a better way to inform parents.
Thankfully this had a happy ending but also be used to be a wake-up call for all parents and school districts.
"I can't say this was the schools fault for letting your child get on the bus, That was simply your child forgetting about the after school program that day. It happens."
It is 100% absolutely the schools fault. When I was 7, my school's secretary told me my mother called and wanted me wait at the school until she picked me up. I insisted that my mom would never have me stay behind at school while my younger brother got on the bus as usual. The school REFUSED to let me on the bus and I waited by myself on the school playground. FOUR hours later, my mom, grandma, grandpa and brother found me at the school dutifully waiting to be picked up. It turned out that another mom with the same last name wanted her son, who was in my class, to stay behind. It's not up to the kid to stay at school or get on the bus. It is up to the school.
If you are looking for bus information...you should call the bus company....First Student... They will be quicker to answer any questions than the schools. A bus might be late picking up students from home, but ultimately not late to school. Just a suggestion :)
Babydoll_W said: "The parent- sorry but my question is why did the parent not have a back up plan in place in the first place."
I am the letter writer and I would like to respond to this question. First of all, please understand that a letter to the editor is limited to 350 words, so there were plenty of details that were omitted in order to fit within this restriction. You assume that I did not have a back up plan to begin with and that implies that I am an irresponsible parent which, I assure you, I am not. I have a teenage daughter who, on most days, arrives home at 3 pm and would have been able to let my daughter in that day except that she was at a doctor's appointment. Additionally, my garage is equipped with a key pad that will allow anyone who knows the code to open the garage door and enter my home. My middle child knows this code so that he would be able to let himself and my first-grader into the house in the event that no one else was home. Since my youngest is not yet tall enough to reach the keypad, she does not yet know the code. It was beyond the realm of my imagination that my youngest daughter would be stranded without even the aid of either of her siblings and in that respect, I have definitely learned my lesson. In other words, I needed a back up plan for my back up plan.
Understand also that this is Alaska, there are many rural areas where kids may not have access to a neighbor within walking distance so your tip about talking to the neighbors won't work for everyone.
The bottom line here is that it should never have happened in the first place. While my kids' school has made corrections, there could be other schools in our community that have similar loopholes and I wanted parents to be aware so that this never happens again.
If you are interested in late bus reports, NBC has them every morning and I think it is 101.something FM has them as well. If you are leaving your kids out to wait for the bus, why would you not check the late bus reports? This isn't directed to you USAwife, but other posters in this thread who apparently do not know about this.
Always double check with your kids in the morning so everyone is on the same page. Not the school's fault at all.
I am going to have to respectively disagree, they were informed by the missing childs sibling, that they were supposed to be there, and no one double checked. I have to bring ID in my teenage kids school to get them out, you think they would be concerned about the whereabouts of a six year old. And if there wasnt a flaw in policy, as the school admitted, then a new policy wouldnt have been introduced. Yes, six year olds are forgetful, but are not accountable when responsible adults are around.
sourdoughdiablo said: "Always double check with your kids in the morning so everyone is on the same page. Not the school's fault at all."
I did double check with my children that morning. This is a six year old child we're talking about...kids do sometimes forget, especially when they are so young. It is up to the adults who are entrusted with her care to ensure that she is safe. By your reasoning, my six year old child should be responsible for her own safety and that is absolutely absurd.
Apparantly no one here has ever been at the schools in North Pole when they let out. I have. There is 1 teacher appointed "bus attendant". That person walks out the door with the kids and stays outside while the kids get on their buses. That 1 teacher does not know each and every child, nor does that teacher know who is suppose to get on the bus and who isn't.
It was my understanding that this was a child that regularly rides the bus home from school. I was not given any reason to believe otherwise. As far as I know the bus driver wouldn't know that particular child was suppose to stay after school.
Sherry29, the after school duty teacher should have done something when the sibling brought it to his/her attention that the sister was missing. Even if it was just to call the parent and notify them that their daughter was on the bus on the way home. The fact that this teacher did nothing is disturbing.
In response to sherry29's last comment:
I have been at the school when it lets out and you give an accurate description of the process once the children are OUTSIDE the school. In order to have prevented this from happening, changes needed to be made INSIDE the school before my child ever even made it out the door. I did not and do not expect the bus driver or the teacher acting as "bus attendant" to know whether or not my child should be riding the bus that day. I do, however, expect my child's classroom teacher to be provided with that information so that they can give a reminder right at the end of the day. I also expect the afterschool program to take attendance and notify me immediately if my child fails to attend so that I can make sure that someone is at the bus stop to meet her. Neither of these things are terribly diffficult to do and either one of them could have prevented the horrible situation that occurred. As I said before, the school took immediate action to correct the problem. I did not write this letter to attack anyone, only to shine a light on what might also be a problem in other schools so that they can make corrections BEFORE they have an incident like this.
usawife74- My intention was not to imply that you were by any means a bad parent. If it came across as so, accept my appologies.
I wanted to stress the importance of having a back up plan. My thinking was that schools have hundreds of children to account for. Parents have only their own children (normally). (Back-up plans were something that was stressed while living overseas.)
Having been a preschool teacher and worked in after school programs- I know that students altering schedules can be overlooked. However, it boggles my mind how the school/program didn't examine the other child's concern. If a student had ever said, "my brother/sister isnt here and should be"- phone calls are being made.
Ruralness makes it harder but not impossible. My children have to walk almost a mile to get to bus-but they either can go to a nearby neighbor or get in the house. But if the family is so rural that the children cannot walk to another home, especially in winter, they better have access to the house or a cell phone (even if just a prepaid one)-regardless of age. Accidents/misshaps occur.