Complaint Summary
Date Findings Report Sent
May 29, 2026
Case Number
26-0537
School District
Manchester
Person filing complaint
Parent
Grade Level
Middle School
Allegation(s)
- The Parent has alleged that the District failed to provide safe and effective door to door transportation for the Students, and as a result, the Students sustained injuries. The Parent also alleges that an aide should have been on the van with the Students to ensure safe and appropriate transportation. Lastly, the Parent has alleged that the operator of the vehicle was not trained in the specific needs of the Students. (Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies (RCSA) § 10-76d-19)
Conclusion(s)
State law provides that each board of education shall provide, as a related service, safe and appropriate transportation as required to implement the IEP for each student with a disability. (RCSA § 10-76d-19(b)) State law also provides that operators of vehicles shall be given the necessary in-service training to acquaint them with the specific needs of the student being transported and to equip them to meet those needs. Lastly, RCSA § 10-76d-19(d) provides that each board of education shall provide transportation aides where such aides are necessary to ensure safe and appropriate transportation. A transportation aide must be assigned to each vehicle transporting a student whose IEP requires an aide.
Based upon a review of the videotapes provided by the District, it is concluded that the District failed to provide the Students with safe and appropriate transportation in violation of state law by contracting with the bus company without ensuring bus company staff were provided adequate training, or in the alternative, providing a bus monitor for the Students. Additionally, the District failed to provide the bus drivers with the necessary in-service training to acquaint them with the specific needs of the Students and to equip them to meet those needs, such as training in behavior management and training related to the Students’ individual BIPs.
The video footage shows that the Students were easily able to remove themselves from their car seats and engage in unsafe behavior, and were also easily able to engage in self-harming behavior. These behaviors were distracting to all three drivers while reaching speeds of approximately 65 miles per hour. Even though the drivers were aware that the Students were not properly strapped in their car seats, they made no attempts to correct the problem and secure the Students in the seats. Furthermore, the female Student’s ability to rip the car seat from the van seat completely calls into question whether the car seats were properly installed in the van in the first place.
Corrective Action(s)
- The District shall provide training or otherwise ensure the transportation company provides training to all drivers and bus monitors providing transportation for the Students. This training shall include information about the needs of the Students and equip drivers and bus monitors with the necessary skills and strategies to meet those needs. Additionally, the training shall include de-escalation techniques, positive behavioral interventions, behavior management skills, and specific training on the Students’ individual BIPs.
- The District shall convene a PPT meeting to review the specialized transportation in the Students’ IEPs. Given that the Students were easily able to remove themselves from their car seats, the PPT must discuss whether another type of seat is safer and therefore more appropriate for the Students. A copy of the IEP, with a summary, must be sent to this office for review.