After students on a school bus in the Unorganized Territory of the state found an unopened beer can and immediately informed both school officials and their parents, the issue has caught the attention of the state government.
One parent not only contacted local police over the incident, but also Shelly Lane, the superintendent of schools in the Unorganized Territory. Lane immediately turned to the state patrol for an answer, one that she was not expecting. The investigation was placed in the hands Maine State Police Lt. Brian Scott.
“There’s no state law that prohibits a school bus driver from transporting alcohol on a bus, [although] it’s certainly a violation of most policies,” Scott said to the Bangor Daily News.
Kennebec Intra-District Schools (KIDS) regional school unit Transportation Director Katie Spear said she remembers the issue coming up some years ago with a fellow transportation employee who was told it “wasn’t a wise decision to stop at the liquor store on the way home.” Now that she is a transportation director, she constantly reminds her drivers that such practice is completely unacceptable. Her transportation staff even goes as far as to check the back packs of high school seniors before they are taken on their graduation trips.
“Sometimes I truly wonder about people’s common sense or lack of,” said Spear. “What also bothers me more is these things always get so much attention. It just makes us all look bad.”
The Department of Education was reviewing its rules and procedures to determine whether changes will be made.
