KANNAPOLIS, N.C. — A school bus driver in Kannapolis has been fired after cellphone video showed her screaming at students on the bus.
School district officials said Monday they were contacting families who are involved to apologize and let them know they are addressing the issue strongly and swiftly.
The video shows the bus driver screaming at the students and at one point saying, "I don’t care about none of y’all little kids.”
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This video was taken by Julia Jackson’s 13-year-old son who called her after the bus got a flat tire, and they were on the side of the road.
"I heard screaming in the background, and I said, ‘Is that her screaming?’ And I was, like, ‘She should be trying to make y’all calm, so just hang up and record everything.’”
She said she was worried about the children and how her son would react.
"My son has certain disabilities, ADHD, ODD and bipolar,” the mother said. "I said, ‘Well, how are you feeling?’ and he said, 'I’m scared.'"
The school district confirmed the incident happened on Friday afternoon and released a statement:
“The behavior of the bus driver shown on the video is very upsetting and not acceptable at all. No one should speak to children like that. We suspended the bus driver the moment we saw the video."
On Tuesday, Channel 9 learned the driver had been fired.
The mother Channel 9 spoke with said she understands kids can get rowdy but what happened that day was unacceptable.
"You could tell them to hush, or you can step off the bus and call your administrator and say, ‘They’re being too much. I need somebody to hurry up,’” Jackson said. “This is crazy. You don’t handle other people’s children that way.”
It's not clear what led to the driver's outburst.
The district said the video was probably taken inside the replacement bus after the other bus got a flat tire.
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