School bus driver loses job in Washougal after dispute with students

A substitute bus driver has lost his job with the Washougal School District after getting into a heated shouting match with students on their way home from school.

The situation started May 23 at Hathaway Elementary, when the driver got into a bus that is normally used for a different route, leaving students confused, Superintendent Dawn Tarzian said. When the kids boarded, the driver let them sit wherever they wanted instead of in their normal assigned areas.

Then, the students lost their cool when he took a wrong turn, and the kids and the driver began yelling at each other. Some told administrators the driver responded by blasting the heat, though it was a fairly warm day, Tarzian said.

The driver pulled over a few blocks away from the school, Tarzian said. There was enough yelling at the scene that someone called police, and another driver headed out to take over.

“When he arrived, he found kids very upset, some of them yelling and out of control,” Tarzian said.

The district has reported the driver and the incident to State Superintendent Randy Dorn, who oversees standards for bus drivers in Washington’s public schools. The driver’s name was not released.

In light of the situation, the district has changed its protocol for substitute drivers, Tarzian said. Now, administrators will take more precautions to make sure everything is under control before starting the trip.