Post AZIYUtJ3bBs111WIpk by nikikole@mstdn.plus
(DIR) More posts by nikikole@mstdn.plus
(DIR) Post #AZIEoJHNG5AXzIiOkS by vees@epistolary.org
2023-08-31T14:56:57Z
0 likes, 0 repeats
I'm glad I'm a software developer and not a #journalist, this shit is hard.On Tuesday a bus driver and a parent at my kids' #BaltimoreCounty elementary school got in an altercation where the bus driver needed medical attention.On Tuesday night the principal sent out a letter *only to the parents of the children on the bus* and vaguely alluded to "an incident" during the start Back to School night. My kids walk so I did not receive a copy of the letter directly.Other parents started reaching out to me for info on text message since I've usually got my finger on the pulse of these things. I managed to get a screen shot of the letter from another parent who received it secondhand themselves.I wrote to the principal and told her that rumors were going around that she ought to release a statement to all the parents in the school. She wrote back:"Thank you for your email. We have provided letters to the families of those students who were on that particular school bus. BCPS is investigating the matter and will follow up as appropriate. We appreciate your concern and feedback on the matter. We will continue to work with transportation to ensure our students are safe coming and going."Since BCPS was investigating, I reached out to their Office of Communications to see if they would tell me or the other parents anything about it before I shared the letter I had. I wrote to them with a one sentence email: "Will the district be releasing a general statement regarding the physical altercation between a bus driver and a parent at a bus #5269 stop on the afternoon of August 29?"Right before close of business one of the department's communication specialists replied to me saying "Thank you for your inquiry; a letter from [the principal] was sent to the parents of children on [the bus] advising them of this incident."On further pressing this morning I finally got an email back from him simply saying "I am not aware of any plans to release a general statement about this incident. Thank you."Bottom line, if there's a parent and bus driver fighting at or related to my kids' elementary school I believe district has an obligation to communicate with me directly and not make me seek out this information and stonewall me when I do.Actual coverage (sourced through my Facebook posts to the PTA) are up and circulating anyway, and now the rumors are flying about exactly what happened. https://perryhall.patch.com/g/perry-hall-md/n/212478/harford-hills-elementary-school-bus-driver-requires-medical-care-followinghttps://www.nottinghammd.com/2023/08/30/bcps-school-bus-driver-injured-following-altercation-with-parent-in-carney/
(DIR) Post #AZIGG57vZOpg9p6RmK by jensilber@mastodon.social
2023-08-31T15:13:12Z
0 likes, 0 repeats
@vees Crisis communications 101: state what you know when you know it (to the extent allowed by law — which usually allows more than organizations want to believe it does)
(DIR) Post #AZIIBKUvC516I1ihWa by vees@epistolary.org
2023-08-31T15:34:46Z
0 likes, 0 repeats
@jensilber I find it hard to believe that if a letter is released that there are any restrictions on sending to the whole school population rather than just a select group. It honestly boggles the mind.
(DIR) Post #AZIK0BifgsVhmsxysq by jensilber@mastodon.social
2023-08-31T15:55:08Z
0 likes, 0 repeats
@vees I'm sure you're probably right. And as you note, rumors start pretty quickly. They tend to end up making the authorities look worse.
(DIR) Post #AZIYUtJ3bBs111WIpk by nikikole@mstdn.plus
2023-08-31T18:37:36Z
0 likes, 0 repeats
@vees I’m just being a busy body here, but my understanding is that all this happened at dismissal, meaning this parent was on school grounds when this happened. Which, to me, is of concern to all parents, students, teachers and staff.BCPS seems to have a “need to know” policy & they tell as few people as little as they can. This lack of transparency is frustrating.Do parents need to know about everything? No. But some things rise to that level. Rumors are worse than truth.
(DIR) Post #AZIbkTJuHaduus2SJc by vees@epistolary.org
2023-08-31T19:14:00Z
0 likes, 0 repeats
@nikikole Here's the story as I currently understand it from things I've heard, but this is entirely speculation:Bus driver at pickup engages with student in some way that caused one or both to get upsetAt the drop-off bus stop, child's parent and bus driver engage over this issueAfter this event and for safety of children, bus driver returns to his point of origin which is the schoolBus driver turns responsibility of students back over to the principal to seek police and medical attentionSo it seems that two parts of this event may have occurred on school property, and one occurred out in the neighborhood
(DIR) Post #AZIcBqCTK61VhEbypU by nikikole@mstdn.plus
2023-08-31T19:18:59Z
0 likes, 0 repeats
@vees ah. That checks out. My friend was saying “at dismissal” I was like well it had to happen at school unless the kid contacted their parent who then met them at the bus stop — which is what you’re saying. My friend also texted me that “the parent saluted the bus driver”, which was an autocorrect from “assaulted” so we were laughing about that (I was like… saluted 🫡 or saluted 🖕) & I didn’t around to clarifying “dismissal” 😝Would still love to know what it was all about.
(DIR) Post #AZIcK2WZNzwcEfvCgS by vees@epistolary.org
2023-08-31T19:20:27Z
0 likes, 0 repeats
@nikikole Maybe it was the ancient one-finger salute
(DIR) Post #AZIcuUu7LddIgAJv9c by nikikole@mstdn.plus
2023-08-31T19:27:01Z
0 likes, 0 repeats
@vees that’s what I thought too 😂 I fully expect her to continue the story with something about the bus drivers response to the finger.