School Board Should Honor

The Children

To the Editor:

I disagree with the superintendent and the BOE’s decision to keep bus stops at less than safe locations. I presented our neighborhood case regarding moving one bus stop away from the four-stop Button Shop/Little Brook intersection and adding a stop near the cul de sac instead. After losing the hearing because the practice, not policy, of avoiding cul de sacs, or “Pandora’s box,” per the BOE, I appealed with the state. I lost. The state’s hearing officer said that my third grader went to Reed school and that my kindergartener gets off the bus at Hemlock, away from her morning driveway bus stop, with other children. Well, unless Casper is Catholic, no other children get off her bus there. Reed school has no third grade. The hearing officer said the judgment of the BOE of no change stays, and the stops must remain as they were on January 20, 2010, at our driveway.

The decision hasn’t been honored by the BOE. I would like to honor the taxpayers of Newtown by not bringing the BOE to the Superior Court to hold them in contempt. The BOE should obey the court and their own decision. The BOE should honor our neighborhood and our children and pay respect to the 16 petitions and countless emails regarding safety concerns. The BOE should honor the bus driver who prefers the safety of the cul de sac instead of backing the bus full of Newtown children into oncoming traffic. The police agreed that the bus driver can legally turn there, but the BOE, without examining my video or our road, decided against a legal turn. The BOE should honor our children and move the bus stop from the dangerous intersection (where last week a car ran the stop sign and hit a school bus), to our quiet cul de sac. The BOE and superintendent thought that their policy states no cul de sacs. It doesn’t. Cul de sacs are routine. I have it on video.

The BOE has an opportunity to honor Newtown taxpayers and avoid costly attorney fees (the state told me that the attorney against me was paid handsomely — about $400 per hour of taxpayer money) by fixing our safety concerns now, using their own safety walking limit policy, and avoiding future court fees. The superintendent and transportation head both emailed me stating their concerns regarding the safety of our road and agreed with our neighborhood. They had our bus driver turn in our cul de sac. When we asked to add a bus stop near the turn, the superintendent gave no reason why they would not, simply that they would not. When we fought it, they took the cul de sac turn away. “Whatever is best for the BOE” is one policy that trumps even the BOE’s own safety policies. Whatever is best for the children is a more honorable policy we could live with.

Susan McGuinness Getzinger

31 Little Brook Lane, Newtown May 12, 2010