Concerns raised as Ottawa Catholic School Board cuts bus attendants for students with special needs

Parents of children with special needs are speaking out after learning bus attendants will no longer ride on Ottawa Catholic School Board buses. CTV’s Katelyn W

Parents are raising concerns over a recent decision by the Ottawa Catholic School Board (OCSB) to cut bus attendants for students with special needs this fall.

Specialized bus attendants ride the school bus with students and help ensure students are safe and cared for. These include students who are non-verbal or who might have complex medical needs.

Students like six-year-old Mia, who is in senior kindergarten and has relied on a bus attendant for the past two years.

“Mia is six years old she’s a beautiful little girl who is developmentally around four to six months old and has an undiagnosed genetic condition,” said her mother, Amanda Jollymore.

“If she chokes on something, it can be a situation of life or death for Mia and just like most kids in her situation, we’re non-mobile and non-verbal,” said her father, Brian McPhail.

“The bus driver on the bus is the person who is in charge of driving the bus and the bus attendant is there to support the weakest of our community who can’t take care of themselves and can’t help themselves.”

In a statement, the OCSB said approximately 100 students will be affected by the change.

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“We have contacted those families directly to discuss each child’s individual needs and supports,” an OCSB spokesperson said in an email.

“This change follows a review of on-going service challenges, including situations in which buses were cancelled when an attendant was unavailable, resulting in students missing school. Feedback from families indicated that many preferred consistent transportation, even when an attendant could not be present, rather than cancellations.”

But many parents say they were not consulted or asked for feedback, including Jimmy Ruggiero whose nearly 18-year-old son Luca relies on a bus attendant to help him get to school.

“Being that my son is almost 18 now, he’s had an attendant, basically when he started, when he was really young,” he said.

“No one saw it coming, [Monday] is when we got the official letter toward the end of the year. I feel like there was no consultation with us, just no more attendants and the reasonings which I don’t agree with.”

Since the change was a result of an operational decision, it was not brought forward to a public board meeting or included in a board report, CTV News Ottawa was told.

The board says it will work with families, school teams, transportation partners, and health-care professionals to support students and address individual needs.

“We understand that bus attendants have been a valued and familiar part of some students’ daily routines, and that changes like this can raise questions for families,” the board said. “Families with questions are encouraged to contact their school directly.”

Bus attendants told June 25 their last day

Specialized bus attendant Jennifer Bloom told Newstalk 580 CFRA’s Ottawa at Work with Patricia Boal that attendants were told last week that June 25 would be their last day on the job

“We were informed by email that we would be having a Zoom meeting … and on that meeting is when it was indicated that we wouldn’t be returning come September and that June 25 would, in fact, be our last day,” she said.

Bloom says she’s been a bus attendant for more than 20 years.

“We’re their voice, we’re their advocate. We basically do anything, everything for them,” she said. “It also gives the parents peace of mind that there’s an extra set of eyes on their kids on the way to school. With the drivers driving, their sole job is to drive and get us there safely.”

“I’ve worked with students that have several seizures, they can be big seizures, small seizures, aspiration issues. So, it’s extremely concerning that these responsibilities may be put solely on the driver.”

The OCSB says student safety and well-being remain its highest priority.

“Students with significant medical needs will continue to have access to support through established healthcare processes. Where required, healthcare professionals determine the level of support needed during transportation, including nursing care,” the board’s statement said.

A letter from Mia’s school tells parents to “contact your healthcare partner to discuss the process for a medical review.”

But Jollymore says when she reached out to Mia’s healthcare team, it seemed to come as a surprise.

“We were told that they need to look into it and get more information and our personal opinion is that they might not have even been aware.”

In a statement, the Ottawa Student Transportation Authority said it was consulted by the OCSB during its multi-year review, which was focused on addressing ongoing service challenges to provide students with consistent and dependable daily transportation.

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“As partners, we are fully committed to working closely with the OCSB and our transportation operators to support a seamless transition for September, ensuring safe, reliable service and to support student needs,” the OSTA said.

Bloom said she’s concerned that kids with complex needs will be put at risk.

“You’ve got severe cases of some our kids having seizures. You’ve got students being transported with oxygen tanks, you’ve got students that just need the comfort of hearing somebody else and you’re there to hold their hand,” she said.

With files from CTV News Ottawa’s Katelyn Wilson