Rules for Student Conduct on LISD School Buses

For your own safety and that of other riders:

  • Stay seated in your assigned seat.
  • Keep your whole body inside the bus.
  • Do not throw anything from the bus.
  • Get on and off ONLY at your assigned stop.
  • No pushing, shoving, fighting, shouting or inappropriate language.
  • No eating, drinking, smoking, spitting, destruction of property, or possession of harmful objects. Plain, unflavored, unsweetened drinking water in plastic containers is the only liquid or food allowed.
  • Do not bother other students or their belongings.

Other Driving Regulations & Procedures:

  • Students who do not usually ride your bus may accompany a regular rider to his or her stop, only if they have a signed permission slip from the school (this requires a parent/guardian note to be approved by the campus Principal.) If a
    student is to use another stop, (on the same route or on another), a note from the parent must be sent to the office for a bus pass to be issued. On buses already at maximum capacity, passes to ride are not permitted. Please check with your school.
  • Students in Pre-K, Kindergarten and 1st grade must have a legal guardian / adult or older sibling present in order to be released from the bus in the afternoon.
  • Students are assigned seats at all grade levels.
  • For safety reasons, animals or other living things, glass containers, skateboards, and any other object that, due to its size, would obstruct an aisle or emergency exit, prevent correct student seating, or obstruct the driver’s views are not allowed on the bus. To the extent possible, band instruments will be in the seat with the student. If band instruments cannot safely ride in the student’s seat it will not be allowed on the bus. Refer to Student Code of Conduct for other prohibited items.
  • The student may use telecommunication devices and audio headphones on the school bus, if their use does not create problems. The displaying or taking of photos, with devices so equipped, is not permitted. Driver may terminate equipment, privileges for the day if it becomes disruptive.

Video Cameras

Video camera recording of the ride has proven to be a valuable tool in maintaining safe student conduct. In the event that an incident occurs, videotapes will be retained, and segments may be provided to the campus administrator. Due to legal issues, the
data on the videotape is considered confidential information and, as a matter of privacy, is not released outside the campus/department without the appropriate legal document.

Pick-Up Time Criteria

All LISD school buses attempt to arrive at every bus stop on time. Due to variances between individual clocks, students are asked to arrive at the bus stop five minutes prior to the scheduled arrival time. Buses do not wait for students who are late, under most circumstances.

Special needs transportation follows much the same criteria, but will wait up to three minutes at the stop for the student to load.

All buses will wait seven minutes at the school in the afternoon for students to board. Students are expected to proceed immediately to the buses. Once the bus has moved from its normal load position, drivers will not to stop or open the door for late students due to the safety concerns of having students too close to moving bus wheels.

Bus Routing Criteria

Route Design

Leander ISD’s bus routes are created with student safety in mind, while at the same time maximizing vehicle efficiency. Stops are created that allow students to wait off of the main roadway for the bus if at all possible.

LISD bus stops are not placed in dead end streets or cul-de-sacs whenever possible to minimize bus accidents while backing up – a hazardous maneuver for a vehicle as large as a school bus. Stops are spread as far apart as criteria will allow in order to decrease the number of stops each bus will make on its route, minimizing riding time for the students.

Elementary students may be required to walk up to .2 of a mile (two long blocks) to a bus stop. Secondary students may be required to walk up to .5 of a mile (five long blocks). Bus routes are designed to minimize student ride time.

Students in special programs are subject to different design criteria. Contact the Transportation Department at 512-570-0700 for additional information.

Special Needs Service Parameters

At Leander ISD we work to ensure that your child arrives at school and returns home safely with care and thought given to his/her individual needs. Success with your student occurs as a result of our commitment, skill, knowledge, understanding, and ability to communicate. All LISD drivers and monitors participate in frequent in-service training to expand and improve their driving skills and upgrade their knowledge of helping children with special needs.

In Leander ISD’s system, everyone works hard to communicate needs and changes. When changes occur, routes must be revised and time changes communicated to all parents. Should transportation be determined to be a related service by the ARD Committee, please plan to transport your child to and from school the first three (3) days following the ARD. After the ARD, the driver will call you within three (3) days to:

  • Introduce him/herself and the monitor;
  • Tell you how and when you can reach him/her; and
  • Establish times and location for your child’s pick-up and drop-off.

As A Parent, You Can Help Support Your Student By:

  • Always keeping your emergency contact information up-to-date.
  • Attending your child’s ARD committee meetings and Annual Reviews.
  • Completing the Special Needs Transportation Information Sheet.
  • Ensuring a responsible person is home when your child is picked up in the morning and brought home in the afternoon. (Drivers assume responsibility at the door of the bus in the morning and will not release the child until they see the responsible person after school.)
  • Having your child ready to board the bus within three (3) to five (5) minutes of the scheduled time each morning.
  • Calling 512-570-0700 and making an appointment to speak with the driver rather than delay them in route to transport other students.
  • Teaching your child to follow the bus rules. (A copy will be provided to you.)
  • Notifying the Transportation Office (512-570-0700) as early as possible when your child will not be attending school. An answering machine is provided so that you may leave messages after hours if necessary. Failure to ride three consecutive days will result in termination of service until the parent/guardian calls the Transportation Office and reinstates the service.
  • Sharing information with the driver and/or monitor regarding changes in schedule, medical status or major personal disruptions that would seriously affect your child’s behavior.
  • Communicating in writing any medical information, medication or student health status changes which would affect your child’s transportation.
  • Being open to information from the driver or a monitor regarding their observations and concerns.
  • Making sure your child goes to the restroom before boarding the bus.
  • Maintaining consistent day care. (Frequent changes adversely affect bus schedules for all students assigned to the bus.)
  • Remembering that students in wheelchairs must have properly operating brake locks, foot rests, arm rests, and a safety belt.

Special Needs Transportation: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What happens if I’m not home to receive my child after school?

If no one is home to receive your child when the driver arrives, the driver will continue with the route, keeping your child on the bus until the other children have been transported. Then the driver will make an attempt to leave your child at your home one more time. If no one is home after the second attempt, the driver will return the child to his/her campus.

Why does it take up to three days to begin transportation services for my child?

When a new student is added to or dropped from a driver’s list, the time of pick-up and drop-off changes for all students on that route. Parents need information as quickly as possible to adjust to changing pick-up and drop-off times. The driver also needs information about their children before transporting them. The three-day lead between notice and start of transport allows for necessary information processing.

Why must my child be on the bus so long?

Door-to-door service for special needs students requires the drivers to go to multiple locations (often as many as 10 – 15) spread out over a large geographic area, and to transport students to locations that are out of the child’s home attendance school area. Our goal is for no special needs student to be on the bus for more than one hour each way.

Whom do I call when I have questions or concerns?

If you have questions or concerns about transportation services for your child, please call the Leander ISD Transportation Department at 512-570-0700.