Student Transportation Services of

   Thunder Bay

   Specialized Transportation Manual

       STUDENT TRANSPORTATION SERVICES OF THUNDER BAY

Special Needs Transportation Service Delivery Model 

 STSTB MISSION STATEMENT To develop, implement, administer, and providea safe, efficient, cost effectivetransportation system for students of Lakehead District School Board, Thunder Bay Catholic District School Board and Conseil scolaire de district catholique des Aurores boreales, that meets the needs of eligible students, parents/guardians, schools and staff.

                                                                                                                                                   Student safety is our number one priority  

 Students come first and the Transportation Department is part of the member-Boards’ system of support services for identifying and including students with special needs into the appropriate program.  The gathering of information regarding the needs, relevant health and contact information and the type of transportation that is required comes from Special Education coordinators and other stakeholder organizations.  Student Transportation Services of Thunder Bay follow official policies, procedures and authorized practices for all three boards;

·          Lakehead Public Schools Special Education Policy 5000 – 5010

·          Lakehead Public Schools Special Education Plan - reviewed annually,presented to SEAC and then to the   Board in the spring of each year

.·          Thunder Bay Catholic Special Education Policy 600 – 601

·          Lakehead Public Schools Transportation Policy 3000 – 3040

·          Thunder Bay Catholic Transportation Policy 700- 704

·          Lakehead Public Schools Anaphylaxis Policy 6060

·          Thunder Bay Catholic Anaphylaxis Practice

·          CSDC des Aurores bore’ales C-O44-P, C-004-DA

The following are items that must be considered: 

 Zones 

• Students wherever possible should be set up in programs closest to their home address.  Cross zone transportation affects cost. The challenge is to keep costs at a minimum when transporting students from diverse locations to centralized program schools. In peak periods and due to complexity three to four days lead time is needed to set up special education students that require wheelchairs, have other equipment requirements or that may come from rural areas.

 DISABILITY AWARENESS 

Mobility Issues 

• Students who are to be transported in wheelchairs or are ambulatory with equipment are set up on appropriate wheelchair vehicles.

 Equipment Needs 

• Some children bring walkers, canes, have braces, casts etc that prevent us from using the most cost effective means of transportation, as a result each student is assessed on an individual basis.

 Behavior Issues (due to cognitive conditions) 

• Each child is assessed on an individual basis by appropriate special education staff and depending on the degree of behavior identified, the type of transportation provided is then decided upon.  Points that are  considered; if a child can be included on a regular school bus; can ride in a special education vehicle; can ride in a taxi with other students or must be transported alone. Refer to page 5 “Definition of Exceptionalities”.

 Medical Conditions 

• Children with life threatening allergies or medical conditions are identified on our routes and information is then passed on to respective school bus drivers.
• Boards have Anaphylaxis policies or practices in place.
• Other medical conditions are assessed on an individual basis and noted on routes.

             Refer to page 5 “Definition of Exceptionalities”.

 Anaphylactic Students 

• STSTB annually requests information regarding any students that are Anaphylactic or that suffer from other life threatening allergies.  Students and the location of medical equipment that may be needed i.e. Epi pen or Puffers, are identified on the routes. 

• All drivers contracted by member Boards are trained in the use of the Epi pen. Should there be a need for driver intervention a meeting is set up with the driver, parents and school personnel to develop strategies to minimize the risk and to make sure drivers are equipped to respond appropriately.

     Time and Distance Tolerance 

• STSTB service area is large and geographically diverse.  Distance from home to school and the student’s ability to travel a long time over a great distance is considered at the time of entry into the program.  Most special education programs are provided at urban schools only; students from rural areas are given individual consideration.

 Program Hours 

• Special Education classes can be set up using a wide variety of “hours of attendance”.  Some students also have staggered entries.  Transportation implications are asked to be considered at intake meetings.

 Emergency Evacuation Drills 

• Each year schools are asked to carry out by October 15^th, Emergency Evacuation school bus drills for all students. This plan includes and considers the individual capabilities and needs of each student with special needs. Service providers that transport our students are trained in the Emergency Evacuation of special education students on their vehicles.

 Booster Seats 

• The use of booster seats in transporting STSTB students follow MTO Regulation 613 s. 8.1 (1) Seat Belt Assemblies, that require all pre school to primary grade students that ride in vehicles hired (other than a school bus or taxi) by the Board(s) to be secured in a booster seat.  Information on the age, height and weight of students are identified at time of intake.

 Harnesses and Seat Belts 

• If a seat belt is required to enable a student with special needs ride a regular school bus STSTB follows the Highway Traffic Act (s.106) requiring that any seat belt installed in a seating position must be used by anyone occupying that seat in the absence of the special needs student.

• Harnesses are used in some instances to aid in the transportation of students with special needs on regular school buses.  Harnesses will be used following the guidelines of Transport Canada.  Tether kits and vests are evaluated according to size and weight of individual students.

      Driver Training (Safety) 

• Drivers contracted by member boards are trained in all aspects of safety and this includes a Disability/Awareness course in the transportation of students with special needs. All drivers receive First Aid and CPR training.  Driver workshops on transporting children with specific needs such as Autism and student/driver relations are held yearly.  Drivers of special education vehicles are trained in the use of Securing Devices, lift operation and wheelchair loading and unloading.  Driver should communicate regularly with the school to ensure the needs of the children are met.

  Dropping off Students with Special Needs 

• Students with special needs will not be dropped off at school, at home or return address, without a parent, designated adult or caregiver to receive them.  Students are never to be left alone in the vehicle.  Routes will be designed to pick up and drop off students in front of home.

 Yearly Review 

• Before the onset of every new school year special needs facilitators are contacted by STSTB requesting any information on the “progress” of students that would allow them to be transferred from a special needs vehicle to a mainstream school bus. 

 Parental Responsibility 

• At time of “intake” meeting parents are reminded to follow guidelines set out in our School Bus Transportation Instruction booklet, and must realize that all rules and regulations related to school bus transportation apply to the exceptional student.

Parental help may be needed at time of pick up when loading students into vehicles that require vests to be buckled or to have specific equipment ready. 

Public Special Transit (HAGI) 

• Some students with specialized mobility needs are provided service using contracted accessible handi-van vehicles.  Rates for public special transit (HAGI) are negotiated.  HAGI keeps, wherever possible the same driver on school trips.  All drivers have criminal reference checks, CPR, First Aid training, Epi Pen training and Emergency evacuation of vehicles as well as training in accessibility requirements for the transporting of special needs students.

 Taxis and Wheelchair Accessible Taxis 

• In some instances taxis need to be used in the transportation of students with special needs.  Taxis are used as a last resort and are hired only when students with special needs cannot ride on a regular school bus, handi-van, special education bus or special education vehicle.  Transporting students from diverse locations to centralized programs and hours of programs are also some reasons why taxis may be used.  Every effort is made to keep same drivers on school runs.  Students transported by taxi are to ride in the back seat only.

        Mileage to Parents 

• STSTB service area is large and geographically diverse. Sometimes distance to program location and hours of attendance does not enable us to provide contracted special education vehicles or regular school buses to transport children.  Taxis are cost prohibitive from far distances and in some instances it is cost effective to pay parents, that are willing, a mileage rate to transport their child into school.  They are paid the Board mileage rate.

  Coding of Special Education Needs 

• Student Service codes noted in Mapnet allow for easy identification of students needs. Codes also help us identify the mode of transportation that would best suit the child taking into consideration their needs and the cost to transport.  Information can be printed on routes to alert drivers of any issues that may occur.

    DEFINITION OF EXCEPTIONALITIES 

Behaviour

 A learning disorder characterized by specific behaviour problems over such a period of time, and to such a marked degree, and of such a nature, as to adversely affect educational performance, and that may be accompanied by one or more of the following: a)       an inability to build or to maintain interpersonal relationships;b)       excessive fears or anxieties;c)       a tendency to compulsive reaction;d)       an inability to learn that cannot be traced to intellectual, sensory, or other health factors, or any combination thereof. 

Communication

Autism 

A severe learning disorder that is characterized by: a)       disturbances in:-rate of educational development;-ability to relate to the environment;-mobility;-perception, speech, and language; b)       lack of the representational symbolic behaviour that precedes language. 

 Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing

 An impairment characterized by deficits in language and speech development because of a diminished or non-existent auditory response to sound.

    Language Impairment

 A learning disorder characterized by an impairment in comprehension and/or the use of verbal communication or the written or other symbol system of communications, which may be associated with neurological, psychological, physical, or sensory factors.