For various reasons, the massive union-run public school systems and local districts across the country have been struggling to find enough teachers and even bus drivers to work for them.
This is similar to worker “shortages” seen in other professions and industries across the United States following the COVID years which included multiple government stimulus payments sent to Americans who were told to stay at home.
The main issue that can arise from a shortage of workers is that some employers in a sign of desperation, sometimes lower their standards in order to get the positions filled.
A problem for many parents of school-aged children is when the teachers and bus drivers are hired, though not the best candidates.
I believe two bus drivers in Utah fit this mold. They were both placed on administrative leave this week for how they responded to students telling them they made a wrong turn.
A parent of a student at Dry Creek Elementary School in Lehi sent a video to FOX 13 News on Friday that their child recorded while riding the bus home that afternoon.
“One more person says ‘Where are we going,’ I’m going to shoot them,” the driver is heard saying on the bus intercom in the video “OK, now listen — I missed the stop; I’m trying to turn around. Do you understand? OK. Sit down and be quiet.”
A spokesperson for the Alpine School District sent a statement in response to FOX 13’s request for a comment on the incident:
“We are aware of a situation on a bus today. The employee is on administrative leave pending an investigation. We strongly condemn any threatening action or language directed toward others. We expect all employees to create safe and nurturing environments free of verbal or physical threats. Appropriate action will be taken to ensure this matter is addressed and not repeated.”
Two days prior, the station received another video taken by a student on a bus in the Tooele County School District, where the driver screamed at the kids on board who were telling her she was going the wrong way.
https://youtu.be/NcVVT_dn8N4
“I know! OK? Shut up!” she can be heard yelling. “I’m gonna turn around, OK? Shut up!”
The Tooele County School District said the driver was a substitute, and a spokesperson confirmed that the driver “became frustrated and screamed at them” when the kids told her she made a wrong turn.
“It was apparent the students were trying to be helpful, and her response was not acceptable or conducive to our district values,” the district’s statement read. “The substitute driver has since been placed on administrative leave pending an investigation into the incident… parents and guardians of the students who were on that bus should be contacted through email tonight [Thursday] explaining what happened, just in case they were not already aware.”
This and countless other stories of deranged teachers and bus drivers, etc, have led millions of parents who have lost confidence in the public education systems, including my wife and me, to pull our children out of the failing system, seeing homeschooling as the only viable option to educate our children.
The great news is, after educating both our children through high school, we can say it was one of the best decisions we have made as parents.
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