Connecticut district may cut school bus aides

The superintendent for Westport Public Schools is looking to save $125,000, and says that monitors are no longer necessary due to technology that improves bus safety. Parents and board members argue against the proposal, citing greater demands on school bus drivers and more distracted motorists.

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January 21, 2016

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WESTPORT, Conn. — A school district superintendent’s proposal to cut bus monitors in an effort to save money, saying they are no longer needed due to technology that improves bus safety, drew protests from parents, Westport Now reports.

Looking to save $125,000 in the budget, Elliott Landon, superintendent of schools for Westport Public Schools, said that, in addition to monitors no longer being necessary, many of them have retired and it is hard to find replacements, according to the news source. He added that this has left only one-quarter of the elementary school buses staffed with monitors, which he said is inequitable.

Although the proposal received support from a board member, other board members and parents voiced opposition to removing school bus monitors, Westport Now reports. Arguments in favor of keeping bus monitors included greater demands on school bus drivers, an increase in the number of distracted motorists, more traffic and a need for young children to have supervision on the school bus.

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Topics:aide/monitor Connecticut cutting costs Safety Management

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