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Two bus incidents prompt Buffalo Grove families to seek stronger safeguards
Parents in Kildeer Countryside School District 96 say a child found a syringe on a bus and a first grader was left to walk home after being dropped at the wrong stop. The district and bus operator say they are investigating concerns and working to improve safety.
BUFFALO GROVE, Ill. — Two incidents involving elementary school students on buses serving Kildeer Countryside School District 96 have left parents seeking clearer assurances about student safety and transportation procedures.
In September, 5-year-old son of district parent Paul Kossof found a dirty syringe on the floor of his bus. Kossof said his son thought it was a quarter, picked it up and brought it to his teacher. A school nurse later found a puncture mark on the child’s hand. The family remains worried about possible health consequences, though no diagnosis was reported.
Kossof said the episode upset his son, who saw his parents’ distress and felt responsible. The family has since attended medical appointments, he said.
In a separate incident last month, Toni Wyatt’s 6-year-old son was dropped off at the wrong location. Wyatt said the bus passed her stop, and the driver told her the child was not aboard when she stopped the bus to ask. Other students directed Wyatt’s son, a first grader, to where he had been left about three-tenths of a mile from home, near the busy intersection of Route 83 and Arlington Heights Road. He walked home alone, and strangers stopped to ask if he was lost.
Wyatt said school administrators responded promptly and expressed alarm. But both parents have questioned the performance of Illinois Central, the private company operating the district’s buses. They said they posted about the incidents on Facebook and subsequently heard from other parents who described similar concerns.
Kossof said the district and bus company apologized and promised an investigation, but he has not received details about specific steps taken to prevent another incident. Wyatt said she wants the concerns to receive serious attention before a more harmful outcome occurs.
District 96 said it treats safety concerns with urgency and raises them directly with its bus contractor, while withholding confidential student information. The district said it investigates incidents, works with families and pushes for improvements to transportation systems and routes.
Illinois Central said it takes safety concerns seriously, reviews reports and works with district leadership to prevent recurrence. The company also said its drivers had not been involved in a collision during the current school year, while noting that student privacy prevents it from discussing individual cases.
The district said families deserve dependable transportation and that it will continue advocating for students’ safety.