After receiving reports that one of our scheduled bus routes was running late this morning, the bus was met immediately by the district transportation director upon the driver’s return to the transportation lot. During the course of his interview, the director detected the smell of alcohol emanating from the driver. Pursuant to district policy, the employee was immediately escorted to a facility for drug and alcohol screening. This testing revealed that the driver had a blood alcohol content above the legal limit.
The driver had driven both an elementary and secondary route this morning, beginning at approximately 7:15 am and ending at 8:45 am. The bus drove route 24 which included 66 students who attend Central Elementary or Central Intermediate, and six students who attend Bixby Middle School or Bixby High School. All students were delivered safely to their school sites and no additional incidents were reported involving the driver and students.
The families of students served on this route are being notified by district personnel this afternoon. Bixby School Resource Officers were involved in the investigation and arrested the bus driver at the transportation facility shortly after noon today. The driver has been dismissed from employment with Bixby Schools.
I am deeply sorry that our children and families have been impacted by this terrible lack of judgment on the part of a Bixby employee. Keeping our students safe is the most important responsibility we have as school employees. As the Superintendent of Schools, and as a parent and grandparent, I fully understand the potential emotional impact this may have on students, family, and staff. Supports will be made available for students as necessary. It is our goal to be transparent regarding these types of incidents and we will immediately review our policies and protocols to ensure appropriate safeguards are in place to prevent this from happening in the future.
Rob Miller
Superintendent