LITTLETON, Colo. — The Littleton Public Schools Board of Education is taking action following the alleged abuse of students with autism by a paraprofessional aboard a school bus.
Kiarra Jones, 29, was arrested last month and initially charged with one felony count of third-degree assault on an at-risk person. Eight additional charges of third-degree assault on an at-risk person and two misdemeanor counts of child abuse have been filed against her.
The children, who are all non-verbal and rely on caregivers for their basic needs, traveled on a specialized LPS school bus every day between their homes and the Joshua School, a specialized facility that offers one-on-one instruction for children with autism. Rathod | Mohamedbhai LLC, which is representing the children's three families, said video footage from that school bus showed the bus aide, identified as Jones, repeatedly striking, punching and stomping on one of the children, the law firm said.
Ever since the video came to light, parents have pushed the LPS school board for change.
The district will soon launch a special transportation task force. The 20-person task force will focus on improving transportation practices and include district leaders, transportation staff and parents.
The school board was considering several policy changes, including increasing video retention time from five to 10 days and requiring random audits, especially on buses of students with special needs. However, the board is pausing any potential changes so the task force can develop a plan.
Jessica Vestal's son, Dax, was one of the students who was allegedly attacked by Jones. Vestal wants to see the focus placed on hiring instead of training so such incidents never happen again.
“Focusing on the hiring process, I would really like to see two paraprofessionals on nonspeaking buses for accountability,” said Vestal.
Littleton
Littleton Public Schools plans to change bus video policy after aide arrested
There are about 350 students in the district who need specialized transportation, which equates to roughly 25 routes. Parents hope the task force's impact is felt beyond Littleton.
“It’d be really nice to see a lot of policy change come out of it, not just at Littleton Public Schools but on a state level, on a federal level. And that's really our goal,” said LPS parent Jessica McBride.
The plan is to provide the Board of Education with policy recommendations in August in order to implement them this coming school year.
