Rules of Conduct

BP 5131.1, 5 CCR 14103

In order to help ensure the safety and well-being of students, bus drivers and others, the Board of Education expects students to exhibit appropriate and orderly conduct at all times when using school transportation, including while preparing to ride, riding or leaving the bus.

The Superintendent or designee shall establish regulations related to student conduct on buses, bus driver authority, and the suspension of riding privileges.  He/she shall make these rules available to parents/guardians, students, and other interested parties.  Students found to be in violation of the district’s bus conduct rules shall be subject to discipline in accordance with Board policy and administrative regulation.  The Superintendent or designee may deny a student the privilege of using school transportation upon the continued disorderly conduct of the student or his/her persistent refusal to submit to the authority of the driver.

Pupils transported in a school bus shall be under the authority of and responsible directly to the driver of the bus, and the driver shall be held responsible for the orderly conduct of the pupils while they are on the bus or being escorted across a street, highway or road. Continued disorderly conduct or persistent refusal to submit to authority of the bus driver shall be sufficient reason for a pupil to be denied transportation.  A bus driver shall not require the pupil to leave the bus in route between home and school or other destinations.

The following rules apply at all times when students are riding a school bus, including when on school activity trips

1. Riders shall follow the instructions and directions of the bus driver at all times.

2. Riders should arrive at their designated bus stop on time and stand in a safe place at the stop to wait quietly for the bus.

3. Riders shall enter the bus in an orderly manner and go directly to their seats.

4. Riders shall sit down and fasten any passenger restraint systems. Riders shall remain seated while the bus is in motion.

5. Riders shall not block the aisle or emergency exit with their body or personal belongings. Riders may bring large or bulky items, such as class projects or musical instruments, on the bus only if the item does not displace any other rider or obstruct the driver's vision.

6. Riders should be courteous to the driver and to fellow passengers. Vulgarity, rude, or abusive behavior is prohibited.

7. Any noise or behavior that could distract the driver, such as loud talking, scuffling or fighting, throwing objects, or standing or changing seats, is prohibited and may lead to suspension of riding privileges.

8. Riders shall not use tobacco products, eat, or drink while riding the bus.

9. Riders may bring electronic devices onto the bus only if such devices are permitted at school. If the use of cellular telephones or similar devices disrupts the safe operation of the school bus, the bus driver may direct the student to no longer use the device on the bus.

10. Riders shall not put any part of the body out of the window nor throw any item from the bus.

11. Riders shall help keep the bus and the area around the bus stop clean. Riders shall not damage or deface the bus or tamper with bus equipment.

12. Service animals are permitted on school transportation services; all other animals are prohibited.

13. Upon reaching their destination, riders shall remain seated until the bus comes to a complete stop and upon the signal from the driver, unfasten any restraint system, enter the aisle, and go directly to the exit.

14. Riders should be alert for traffic when leaving the bus and shall follow the district's transportation safety plan when crossing the road and exiting the bus.

The driver or any passenger shall report any violation of the district's bus rules to the principal or designee. The principal or designee shall notify the student's parent/guardian of the misbehavior, determine the severity of the misconduct, and take action accordingly. In instances of a severe violation or repeated offenses, the rider may be denied transportation for a period of time determined appropriate by the principal or designee.

Bus drivers shall not deny transportation services except as directed by the principal or designee.

Riding on a School Bus is a “PRIVILEGE” not a Right. All students who ride a school bus are subject to bus riding regulations. Safe transportation in a school bus requires cooperation and consideration of all people.

Listed below are some of the unacceptable behaviors that could jeopardize student bus riding privileges:

Refusing to obey driver

Refusal to wear seat belt when the bus is equipped

Failure to remain seated

Throwing objects in, out, or at the bus

Eating, drinking, chewing gum on bus

Lighting matches/lighters

Bothering others, spitting, profanity

Willfully destroying bus property

Smoking on bus

Hanging/yelling out of window

Bringing animals/glass on bus

Fighting

1st Offense:    Warning to student and/or alternative consequences, parent conference.

2nd Offense:   Loss of bus privileges for a minimum of one week, parent conference.

3rd Offense:    Loss of bus privileges for a minimum of two weeks subject to the discretion of the Principal, Transportation Director and the nature of the offense.  Such loss of privileges shall not normally extend beyond the end of the current trimester for elementary (K-6) schools or beyond the end of the semester for secondary schools.

Note: Depending on the seriousness of the act, the student may lose bus privileges for the remainder of the school year on the first or succeeding offense.  Decisions regarding bus discipline will be a collaborative effort between the bus driver, the transportation director and school administration.  When the situation is determined to be an emergency, immediate suspension will occur.  Parents/guardians will be required to pick up the student at the school.