A bus driver was fired Thursday after she reportedly told school officials she slapped a 7-year-old elementary school student during the morning drive to Woodside Elementary School near Mill Creek.
The driver worked for Durham School Services, which contracts bus service to the Everett School District.
The boy’s father reported the incident to a Snohomish County sheriff’s deputy about 8:30 a.m. He initially was not going to file a report but later reconsidered, sheriff’s spokeswoman Jan Jorgensen said.
There was redness on the boy’s face but he did not require medical aid, Jorgensen said. Campbell said the boy stayed in school for the day.
The bus driver, whose name was not revealed, could face an assault charge, Jorgensen said.
The boy was reportedly misbehaving in some "verbal" kind of way, said Gay Campbell, a spokeswoman for the Everett School District.
The bus driver allegedly "stepped over the line … and made inappropriate contact" with the student, said Brian Higginbotham, general manager of Durham Transportation.
The bus driver reported the incident to the school principal when the bus arrived, Campbell said. The school district contacted the boy’s parents and Durham Transportation.
The driver had a good work history with the company until Thursday, Higginbotham said. She had worked for Durham for more than two years.
The parents of the child — whose name was not released — did not return a phone call Thursday evening.
A new driver was put on the route immediately, driving it away from Woodside soon after the incident was reported.
Durham employs 105 drivers on 90 routes in the Everett School District.
Drivers are trained in managing misbehaving students on buses. Between state and in-house company training, it takes a driver about three weeks to get behind the wheel, Higginbotham said.
"Student discipline on school buses is a nationwide concern," Higginbotham said. "We take this very seriously."
Herald writer Diana Hefley contributed to this story.
Reporter Victor Balta: 425-339-3455 or vbalta@heraldnet.com.
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