Northeastern Local School District in Ohio is accused by the state Department of Education of improperly transporting a special-needs student, the Springfield News-Sun reports.
The state DOE began looking into the situation when district bus driver Cindy Ladig filed a complaint saying that a special needs student was striking his head on the bus window because his wheelchair was not properly secured.
“The complainant alleges that due to mechanical issues with the student’s wheelchair, the student was unable to be secured on the bus in a manner that prevented the student from hitting his head due to the wheelchair rocking as the bus drove along its route,” the DOE said in a letter to district Superintendent John Kronour last July.
Ladig also said that the school board did not include the transportation department in IEP meetings or provide documentation of what was decided at the meetings. The DOE confirmed that these were violations of state rules.
For its part, the district submitted a reply to the DOE last August saying it researched the problem and suggested solutions for the driver to implement, and that the transportation department was consulted before and after IEP meetings. It reprimanded Ladig for filing the complaint with the state; while insubordination charges were dropped in a school board meeting on Jan. 18, it is maintained that she disregarded district policy by sharing student health information.
Another bus driver and a former transportation director also reportedly addressed the board during the meeting to express concern about the way the transportation department was run.
